Bound to a Blackened Soul
by Onwind
Summary: A massive amount of serial killer newborns are preying closer to Forks. The good news: I'm with my beloved Edward Cullen. The bad news: To stop the newborns we have to unite with the Volturi and I have a feeling the Cullens are hiding something from me...
1. Chapter 1

**Sequel to "STUCK IN VOLTERRA" and takes place FIFTEEN YEARS after Chelsea erased Bella's memories of Caius.**

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**Chapter 1**

**BELLA**

"Oh- oh- Bella, try this one on!"

Mentally groaning, I turned my back on the giant mirror to look at another wedding dress Alice was torturing me with. It had a large sash and white ribbons on the V- shaped neck. I rolled my eyes. "No."

"Aww, c'mon, that's like the fifth one you've turned down!" Alice whined, examining the dress herself. "You're going to need one that brings out your beautiful golden eyes!"

"I don't think bringing out my eye color is supposed a good thing, considering that my eyes are supposed be brown and Charlie is the only one who knows that we really aren't humans."

"So what?" Alice said back. "You can just tell them all you have contacts and-"

"Give it a rest, Alice," The blonde haired Rosalie, muttered from the back of the dressing room. "Just let her choose the dress she wants."

"_Thank you_," I agreed, and turned back around to examine the dress I already had one. It was beautiful, sparkles and creative designs running along the waist. It was even strapless, which was fine with me, thanks to my new type of skin.

Suddenly, a small vampress with long, ebony hair hurried into the rooms, her arms loaded with veils and accessories. "I-I've got the stuff you wanted to me get, Alice."

"Thanks, Bree," Alice smiled, and slowly helped her unload.

"Aw, Alice!" I groaned at all the accessories.

"C'mon, Bella, I just want you to look your very best," Alice winked, much to my annoyance.

Bree was one of our newest recruits to the family. Apparently, she was the only newborn in the newborn army who didn't want to attack the Cullens, which was why they decided to take her in and train her as an official member.

I liked Bree. She was sweet, and seemed really grateful to be in a family. She got along with all of us, and did spend a lot of time with Edward, who to her seemed like her new master/ bodyguard. Edward liked her to, but not romantically. They had some kind of fondness relationship I could never understand, and I had to admit it did make me a wee- bit jealous. Edward was my fiancée, so of course I'd be jealous. Even if she only was about fifteen years old.

"Oh my God, I _love _this!" Alice picked out a set of bracelets from the pile. "They go along with each other really good!"

Rosalie flinched as Alice put her set of bracelets up to her face. She slowly pushed Alice's hand away. "Yeah, yeah it looks great. Lets just hurry up. Emmett was waiting for me to go hunting with him."

"C'mon Rosalie, enjoy a girl's day out for once," Alice insisted, and turned back to be me to try on veils.

"Alice, we've been here five hours," I sighed. "Can't we call it a day? The humans are probably getting suspicious."

Alice huffed. "Fine. But we come back tomorrow! No buts!"

I took that as the best as I could get, and wobbled towards the dressing room to change out of the giant wedding dress. What a day. I barely got any time with Edward anymore. And I probably wouldn't for the rest of the day. Maybe I would stop by Charlie's today. See how he's doing at what not.

"You're going to Charlie's?" Alice asked once I emerged, obviously seeing my decision through a vision.

"Yeah, why not?" I shrugged. "I'll meet you guys back at the fort, okay?"

"Sure, Bells," Alice merely smiled at me, and followed me out the dress shop with Rosalie and Bree at her heels.

I plugged in the key to my red truck, and scanned through the radio until I found one of the greatest artists. Debussy. Yes, not only was the music nice and smooth, it reminded me of Edward. And anything that reminded me of Edward automatically brought me to content thoughts. I was so lucky to marry that guy…

Pulling the truck into reverse, I followed Alice's car all the way to the main road until I had to turn into Charlie's road. It was a pretty nice neighborhood, rain houses at every corner with misty drops of water sprinkling down from the grey sky. Once I pulled into the driveway, I could see Charlie was watching a football game on the coach. Shocker.

Having to knock _and _ring the doorbell to get his attention, he finally shuffled out of his spot to open to door for me. His hair was light silver, most of his facial hair fallen off. Even at an old grandpa age, he was in great shape. "Hey, Bella. Didn't think you were stopping by."

"Sorry. I'm not interrupting anything, right?" I asked feebly.

"No, no, not at all," he held open the door for me. "It's just me, Billy, and Jake watching the football game."

Shock flooded through me as I realized Billy had been placed in his wheelchair next to the couch. Billy was looking older too, his black hair dimming as silver as Charlie's. He only acknowledged me, not as enthusiastic to greet the vampire Bella as much as the human one. Jacob was in the kitchen, opening a soda-can. Despite our different species, we were still close.

"Hey, Bells!" Jake ran forward to give a giant bear hug. "Long time, no see, eh?"

"Yeah…" I said under the werewolf's grip. "Long time, no see."

"Ugh…I don't think I can hug you anymore," he stepped backwards, his nose scrunching. "You smell just plain….awful."

"I could say the same about you," I muttered.

"Haha…so…I'm still the best man at the wedding, right?"

"As always."

"Awesome," Jacob then moved past me to sit with Charlie and Billy. Since watching football really wasn't my thing, I moved out the front door towards the front lawn. Long strands of grass were all sprawled across the sidewalk, all completely uneven. I shook my head. My dad was a mess ever since I moved out.

"Mow the lawn much?" I called, but Charlie didn't answer me.

I looked over the rest of the lawn, noticing the severely untrimmed bushes that were rested against the side of the house. God…I really needed to hire some workers to fix this place up. _P__ronto_.

As I started back inside, my eyes fell upon something faintly shiny buried in the closest bush.

Glancing back to make sure Charlie wasn't watching, I crouched down to eye level with the bush, and fumbled my hand into the damp bush. Suddenly, my fingers found the object I was looking for.

Pulling it out, I found myself staring at a dirty heart shaped necklace. Dirt clogged and seemed to have permanently glued on because of the rain and mud. I blew hard on it, only succeeding in freeing the damaged necklace a little bit of the dried dirt. It seemed like it was a beautiful necklace before it was this badly destroyed. Did someone drop it on accident? Or maybe it was Charlie's…?

"Hey, dad!" I walked inside, holding up the necklace.

"Not now, Bells, it's the last quarter," Charlie kept his eyes stuck to the screen.

"Is this yours?" I pressed.

Finally, Charlie looked at me. He held out his hand, and I gave it to him. Charlie held it close as he studied it, frowning. "Heh. This is strange. Where did you find this?"

"Outside, in your bush," I told him.

"Looks like some kind of locket," Charlie played with the small knob in the corner that was unable to move because of the mud. "Well, it sure isn't mine. Someone must-of dropped it here a while ago. Oh well. Go throw it away for me, will you? Nobody's going to wear it anymore."

Charlie handed the locket back to me, and glued his eyes back on the T.V screen. I examined the mysterious piece of jewelry as I headed into the kitchen. Strange. I couldn't put my finger on it...but it _seemed _faintly familiar...

No, that was impossible. I never wore this type of jewelry. I only wore jewelry Edward bought for me, and he'd never buy this. Perhaps it had been Renee's or something...

Yawning, I stepped on the petal of the trashcan, and tossed the locket inside. Then I started back to the living room to watch the end of the game with Charlie and the Blacks.

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**Aw no! DX she threw her locket away! Anyway, hope you like the first chapter and reviews always make me want to update faster ^^**

**Oh yeah, and some quick facts: Bella got transformed by Edward about a year after her stay in Volterra; Bella and Edward waited a long time to have a wedding for a reason that will be revealed later on. ^^ Hope you liked the idea I'm putting Bree in the story, because since the Volturi really wasn't there to execute her. And I just put Jake in there for the fun of it XD**

**Next chapter in Caius's POV**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, I lied XD The chapter's only going to be half in Caius's POV.**

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**Chapter 2**

**CAIUS**

They were all inducted in a horizontal line, shivering and paling in their disgusting colored rags. There were four of them, the first three elderly men with dirty beards and wrinkled faces, while the other was a girl with long, cinnamon colored hair and appeared to be in her early teen years. Aro slowly rose from his throne, causing the four prisoners to flinch in their chains.

"So," Aro began, his voice shrilling through the throne room. "These are the citizens who were going to expose the vampires species?"

"Yes, master," Both Jane and Alec spoke lifelessly.

Aro nodded sadly, and turned abruptly to the prisoners. "I see. Do you deny this, any of you?"

"Sir…." The first man croaked, looking up Aro desperately. "We did not mean to disobey any rules of yours…we did not know your species existed… they attacked my family- the vampires did- we did not know-"

"It is a pity you have learned of our rules _after _the crime has been done," Aro interrupted. "No matter. The crime remains. You went directly to the police and claimed you saw a vampire. Now, they are suspicious."

"No, good sir- kind sir- they laughed at us!" another man croaked, the rest of his family nodding in agreement.

"But there were some others who believed your assertion," Aro pointed out, slightly smiling when he saw the prisoners nod reluctantly. He turned towards Marcus and I. "Well, Brothers. These humans dishonored the rules. Do we have a solid agreement that they all should be _executed _before they can spread the word of our species?"

I nodded firmly in agreement. Aro was right. These mortals did not obey our rules, and it mattered not whether or not they knew them before. Humans could not be trusted…they would ignore their promises… and do whatever they wanted…

Marcus fully turned to look me right in the eye, disbelief displayed on his features. What? Did he truly believe I would stand up for these mortals? Reading no sign of disagreeing with Aro on my face, Marcus turned towards our superior himself. "Aro, I believe we should further discuss this. The humans were not aware of our rules. They merely did what any of us would do if a vampire was attacking us."

"But now they know, Brother," Aro spoke back. "They need to be destroyed before they can spread their beliefs."

Marcus, clearly defeated in this matter, leaned back in his throne. Aro gracefully turned back to the prisoners. "Bring the prisoners forward so they may be destroyed."

Now, the four of them were struggling, begging to be released and free of death. The girl, she spoke up in a terrified tone. "_Sir_! We swear we will never say a thing more of vampires! _Please_, sir! We will do whatever you wish!"

"Silence, my dear," Aro said sympathetically. "I'm sorry. But the Volturi do not give second chances."

Then, out of all the places, the girl desperately looked in my direction. "Please! My Uncles and I are good people! We will not-"

"Silence, _please_," Aro said in annoyance.

Even as the girl was forced to the ground, and torn away from my gaze, I felt my expression softening. Quickly, I hardened it again. How dare I be revealed to such weakness. The girl got what she deserved.

Once the other three men were on their knees like her, Aro approached the first one, placing either hands on both sides of his neck. Alec and Jane held him down, keeping him from escape. The other three were wiggling, Felix and Demetri keeping them locked to the floor. Then, Aro twisted the first man's neck in both directions. A large snap occurred. The man's body fell to the floor.

The girl screamed the loudest, screaming the dead man's name, tears running down her face. The two other men also seemed to be crying. Ugh. Such filth humans were.

Then, Aro moved on to the next two men, who then dropped lifelessly like the first. Jane and Alec stepped backwards, letting Demetri and Felix hold down the girl as Aro stood in front of her. He reached for her neck, as she lay trembling and sobbing silently.

Suddenly, I found myself unable to watch as Aro held her neck. I was squinting, trying to look away and at the same time rush forward and push Aro off. That girl was going to be executed, and I wasn't stopping it. But what was I saying? I couldn't stop it, not even if I wanted to.

Then I saw her.

I saw _her _in the girl's expression. I saw _her_ staring fearfully up at Aro, ready to join the rest. I saw _her_ not looking at me…like she didn't know I was there…she didn't know I was there for her…

Weakness overpowering me, I quickly stood up and rushed out of the room. I was weak. I was unable to watch her death. She had no resemblance to _her _at all, but something was there. Something that still made me scurry out of the room in fear I'd see the life leave her beautiful eyes…leave me in the world alone…

I slammed the door behind me, trying my very best to calm down. Why must I be so weak? That was so long ago…I should forget it. Forget everything. Forget _her_.

But I couldn't.

Even though she betrayed me.

I quickly opened up one of the bottom drawers in the desk, throwing out all the papers and quills that remained intact inside. I threw _everything _out of the way, until I got to the very bottom of the drawer. And there it was. Sitting there where I had put it, just yesterday when Aro brought forth prisoners.

I practically ripped the top face off, and the slow melody of a lullaby played once more. So beautiful…I thought- my unneeded breathing going ragged. So beautiful…just like _her_…

Why did she do this? Why did she do this to me? Why did she make me _weak_?

Slowly, I turned to look out the window, where the dark clouds buried the sun, rain on it's way.

Why, Bella? Why didn't you come back like you promised?

Were you scared? What were you scared of?

Why didn't you come back?

_Why_?

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**BELLA**

"Hey, Edward? Come look at this."

"No! Jazz- he can't right now!" Alice snapped. "I'm measuring the height between him and Bella. You can show whatever it is to him later."

"Alice? C'mon," I sighed. "You can't make the veil."

"Yes, I can!" Alice insisted. "Since I'm the one doing the wedding, I think I can manage to do one simple task in addition. Now, hold still! I need to make sure the veil isn't going to be taller than Edward's head."

"Why can't it be taller?"

"Because the girl is _supposed _to always be smaller than the guy no matter what!" Alice replied as she held up a ruler to me and my beautiful fiancee's heads.

"No, Alice- Edward _really _needs to see this," Jasper insisted, his eyes frantically stuck onto his laptop screen. "I mean like- _now_."

Alice suddenly halted her movement, her eyes dead forward without seeing. "Oh…yeah. Edward, you really should see what Jazz is talking about." Heh, it was useful having her do those visions.

Edward gave me a small smile before heading towards Jasper on their laptop. By the looks of it, he opened a newspaper article on an internet window, writing at every corner and a large picture of several smiling humans. Probably high school pictures.

Edward stiffened. "You really think so?"

Jasper nodded. "I'd stake my life on it."

"What is it?" I demanded, a little annoyed that I didn't know what was going through Jasper's mind like everyone else was.

"According to this newspaper, one hundred and fifty seven were murdered last week in Wyoming…" Jasper told me, despite Edward's cold glare. "…all by an unknown source. The bodies were all found in an alleyway…with a red colored '_S_' on the wall."

"_One hundred and fifty seven_?" My eyes widened in horror.

"I suspect newborns were behind the attack," Jasper added.

"I disagree," Edward cut in. "Newborns are untamed beasts, yes. But look at the statistics. Did you see last month's newspaper? There was an attack like this one in Texas. One hundred and fifty seven people killed. 'S' mark on the wall."

"And how does this prove the identical attacks weren't newborns?" Jasper pressed.

"Look at Bree's army, for instance. They were all newborns. But they didn't leave a signal every time they ate. And they especially didn't have an exact number of helpless humans they murdered."

"It was only twice," Jasper insisted. "It could be a coincidence."

"Even if it was, where does it say in here that their blood was drained?" Edward ran his finger on the screen. "They could have been serial killers for all we know. They could be humans."

"Don't you think the job to kill over a hundred in one night is a bit of a large job for humans?" Jasper raised an eyebrow. "_And _get away from police? No mere human could accomplish all that."

"It's happened before," Edward replied.

"It could be newborns," I suddenly cut in, causing both boys to turn in my directions. "Maybe even a newborn army that-"

"Bella?" Edward suddenly interrupted, smiling very grimly. "Maybe you should go upstairs with Alice. Finish the veil arrangements or something."

"Okay," I said quickly, flashing him an obedient smile. He smiled back, but immediately looked away and started arguing with Jasper again on the attacks.

As I headed up the stairs, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment. I was a vampire now; I could handle being in discussions. I wanted to be part of them, in fact. And Edward was still treating me like a human.

Suddenly, a silly smile slid on my face. Why was I being such an ignorant brat? Edward was only trying to protect me. He loved me so ardently, even though I knew I still wasn't good enough for him. Sweet…sweet Edward…

On the last staircase, I halted and turned towards the mirror on the wall, wanting to see how stupid my expression was looking. Everything looked perfect. My eyes were bright gold, sparkling cheerfully, beautifully. Nothing could go wrong. I was in the place I wanted to be, with Edward.

Then why did I still feel like there was something missing?

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**Poor Caius :( He doesn't know what happened to her… well, until next time, please review and leave your comments XD**

**By the way, my first day of high school is starting next week, so I **_**may **_**not be able to update as quickly as I usually have. Sorry X( If it were up to me, going on FF would be the only class of the day XD I WISH! Review ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

**Whoo hoo! I got it done XD Lets see if I can finish the fourth chapter in a few days...**

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**Chapter 3**

**CAIUS**

"Oh, Brother- there you are!" I heard Aro speak from behind me, as he quickly matched my pace down the hallway. I did not wait for him. "You haven't shown your face since the execution. I almost feel disappointed in myself. The girl could have been useful to us."

I tried my best not to wince. "How so?" I snapped.

"Well…Marcus _read _your relationship so I just assumed that perhaps-"

"I have no relationship to that girl," I responded, irritated. "And even _I _know that's not what Marcus read and told you."

Aro sighed. "Fine, you got me. But, we really do need to-"

"Discussion over, Aro," I stated sharply, pushing through the doors into my quarters. Of course, Aro followed at my heels, determined to get an answer on the question I had been dodging for many years.

"Caius, we really need to discuss this," Aro said. "Marcus and I know that you are upset and know why you are acting the way you are. But, Brother. It has been over fifteen years. She's not coming back."

Cold daggers struck threw my chest as those words. I quickly replaced my saddened expression by a sharp glare. Why would I care if she came back or not, Aro? Not I.

"Everyone here enjoyed her presence," Aro went on. "I know. I enjoyed it, too. It was unlike her to forget the bond between you two, but obviously when the time came, that was her choice. And that's just the way it has to be. The time has come to move on."

I continued to glare.

"You're going to have to find another," Aro concluded. "Soon. As does Marcus. I personally think Rosalyn would make a fine-"

"Do not dare say it," I snarled, unable to even _think_ how awful it would be to have that crazy new addition as one of Volturi queens. Better yet, my _wife_. "Aro, I mean not to argue with you, or agitate you further, but I seriously do _not _want to discuss this at the moment. I mean not to avoid the topic, and I will eventually come to you with an answer. But not now...not now…"

Aro nodded in understandingly. "Very well, Brother. I will give you time."

"Thank you," I said through gritted teeth.

"Well, I would appreciate it greatly if you would walk me out," Aro smiled coyly, earning himself another icy glare. I hated how Aro always made me 'walk him out.' Like he couldn't find the door himself. Once I _kindly _opened it for him, he started back down the hall, tossing his fingers. "Ta- ta!"

I shook my head to myself. Never would I understand him.

As I started back inside, something caught my eye.

One of the palace doors that lead outside seemed to be opening. I watched closely- recalling no one ever using that door. Suddenly, someone slid through it, checked both ways, and then carefully moved to close the door, trying not to make the slightest squeak. I recognized the person instantly- Chelsea.

I never liked her, now that I thought about it. Sure, she was somewhat attractive, but the way she always wandered the palace alone and supposedly went out to hunt _every _night made me suspicious. She was sneaky. And I most definitely hated sneaky.

Forgetting about shutting my own door, I moved swiftly down the hallway where she was still fumbling with the doorknob. Why would she try to keep her trip silent if it was a mere hunting trip? Unless she _wasn't _hunting…

Once the door was completely closed, I heard Chelsea breath in relief before she turned and gave out an irritating shriek when she saw me standing in front of her.

"Oh- g- good evening, master," she struggled to compose herself. It was failing quite poorly.

"I couldn't help but wonder where you were earlier this evening," I said coldly, not bothering to greet her as she did.

"Hunting, master."

"I dislike being lied to."

She finally met my sharp gaze, giving away everything. "Believe me, master. I was hunting."

I then glanced at the small bag she seemed to be holding behind her back. "Is that so. Well, if I recall correctly, I remember seeing you, Demetri, and Felix hunting _yesterday_."

Chelsea stiffened. "I got hungry again, master."

"I see," I didn't buy her words at all. "Then, perhaps you wouldn't mind informing me what you are so poorly hiding from me behind your back?"

"J-Just a pouch, master."

"For what?"

"Er…just to-"

"What's inside?"

"Nothing, master."

"Show me."

"B-But, sir-"

"_Now_."

Reluctantly, Chelsea unzipped the pouch and handed it to me. As I peered inside, I realized there was definitely a lot of _nothing _inside. Loads of mortal cash was piled inside, stacks of hundred dollar bills. This was more than strange. Why would she need this money? Better yet- where did she get it all from? "State where you got a hold of so many bills."

"I-I stole them," Chelsea stuttered. "F-From my victims."

"Why?"

"I-I thought the Volturi would need it?" she said weakly.

My patience exploding, I grabbed her by the hair and roughly pinned her against the wall. "_You dare _fill me with lies? I will not have it! Tell me what this is for or I swear Aro will-"

"Alright, master!" Chelsea squeaked, my grip loosening. "I-I'll tell you. Please do not tell Master Aro- not yet anyway. A-Afton and I…we- we wish to leave the Volturi-"

"_What_?"

Chelsea cringed but continued. "I-It's not like we are unhappy with the life we have here, but we want to start new, go places. And, well…we can't go elsewhere if we don't have money. I swear we were going to tell you, master, and Master Aro and Marcus of our decision. We swear!"

"Aro will not be thrilled to find top guards of his clan leaving him just to _start new_," I spat. "Anyway, how did you even get the money? Who from?"

Chelsea inhaled sharply when I tightened my grip on her hair. "I-I get it from anyone who needs my assistance."

"What assistance?"

"Memory erasing," her teeth clenched. "They pay me to erase memories of whoever they want. A-Any kind of memory."

I released her, my eyes narrowing. "Who pays you for doing something so terribly vile to another?"

"I-I can't say- all of them- they made me _swear _not to say anything-" she cried. "I-I'm sorry, master. I would tell you if they let me-"

"You have been sneaking out whenever you could to erase memories for money," I summarized, and snarled in disbelief when Chelsea nodded. "This is truly disappointing. And a violation against the Volturi. You will never repeat these actions another night- I will see to it. Until Aro frees you and Afton, your memory gift will never be used again."

Chelsea quickly nodded, and started down the hallway after bowing. Shaking my head, I started back towards my own room. Memory erasing. How low of her. No one would want their memories erased. Only the most disgusting creature would pay her to erase memories on another. Just thinking about it sent my head to tragic thoughts. Chelsea probably separated hundreds of family members or lovers- just by erasing their memories of…of…

Suddenly, I stopped dead in my tracks.

"_It was unlike her to forget the bond between you two…"_

Yes, it was. I knew her. I knew her _well_. She wouldn't forget about me… she would at least come back and tell me she changed her mind. It's not like the Cullens would just tie her up and make her swear not to return, or kill her for that matter. She would come back. Once. At least once…

Unless…

I found myself flitting back down the hallway to find Chelsea.

She was still walking, not noticing my presence until I shoved her roughly towards the floor, and stood above her. She quickly turned over to look at me in cold fear. I snarled nastily- taking long steady breaths to keep from lashing out and twisting that monster's neck. "_What…did…you…DO_?"

She opened her mouth to speak, "Master-"

"_Tell me what you did to her!" _I screamed, forgetting the Volturi rule to stay quiet and calm at all times. "_TELL ME_!"

"Please-"

"_If you want your bloody neck to be attached to you by the time I'm through with you then-"_

"Alright, I- I erased Bella Swan's memories of you!"

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**BELLA**

"Another attack."

The six of us all looked up at Jasper who set a newspaper article on the coffee table, joining us on the couch. Edward got to it the fastest, scanning the front of the article with lots of pictures. I leaned on his shoulder to get a better look, feeling both anxious and shocked to find an identical attack as the last two times. One of the pictures was a brick wall will a spray painted 'S' that looked sly and lethal…

Edward growled to himself, and tossed the article to Emmett who had his hand out to take it. "Where was this at?"

"Near the border of Idaho," Jasper responded, accepting an embrace from Alice. "One hundred and fifty seven people."

"Edward," Emmett sighed, passing the article to Rosalie and looking his brother right in the eye. "I think we should side with Jasper on this one- we need to tell Carlisle about this."

"I'm sure he already knows," Edward mumbled.

"If it's in Idaho, why does this concern us?" Bree suddenly spoke up, earning an apologized glance from most of the vampires.

"These are big attacks, Bree," Edward told her softly.

"It seems…" I said out loud. "…like these attacks are getting closer and closer to Forks."

Edward glanced down at me. "Bella-"

"She's right, Edward," Alice insisted. "Look at the statistics where these attacks are happening. What if these people…whoever they are…are after us?"

"What would they want with us?" Edward backfired. "It's not like we broke any law or anything rash as such."

"Whoever they're after- we need to put an end to it," Jasper said. "They're obviously too much for the police to handle, which is why I am _still _assuming the attackers are newborns."

"The Volturi might be behind it," Rosalie suggested.

"Would you _shut up _about the Volturi for once?" Edward scowled. "They have absolutely _nothing _to do with it! The only thing that would set them off is if Bella was still human- which she's not!"

Rosalie scowled back, her beautiful face twisted with anger. "Shut up, yourself."

"Alright, calm down," Jasper demanded, causing both the blonde and my fiancée to relax obediently. "This is a serious matter. We need to tell Carlisle, if we want to have better advice for the situation."

Jasper then stood up and marched out the door to find his adoptive father, the person I myself believed would brighten up the problem. Still, I wrapped both arms around Edward's, just to ease a slight fear of what was to come.

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**Okay, I know this is a short chapter, but I wanted to get it done before I start school (which is sadly in two days DX) Anyway, hope you liked it and will keep coming with all your awesome reviews XDD**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

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**CAIUS**

The throne room was silent, unmoving. Chelsea was on her knees before Aro, her shimmering ebony hair falling over her shoulders in a fear and guilty manner. Aro examined her with blank, glassy eyes, both his hands folded together at his lips. Still shaking with fury- I scowled at the monster- knowing she felt my rage for her, even if she was not facing me. I would support Aro's punishment for her in everyway possible. Oh how I prayed that her punishment would be something in the lines of eternal torture, or banishment, or even _death_.

Aro broke the silence with an exasperated sigh, turning slightly away from the monster and began to circle her kneeling form. "This… this is a sadness."

Chelsea shuddered fearfully. "I-I'm sorry master- I-"

She was silenced when Aro gave her a look of disproval for speaking. He continued. "Dear, dear, Chelsea…I am shocked to find one of my most trustworthy soldiers…has disappointed me."

Chelsea winced at those last words, and quickly said. "Master- I beg of you- accept my apology. I believe what I did is wrong, and Afton and I should have informed you first. But- please understand-I- I was frightened of-"

"_Frightened_?" I cruelly blurted out, unable to control the crimson rage I was feeling. "You're telling _me_- us- that you were _frightened_? What you did to these people- to _her_- is bloody sickening! If it were up to me- you'd have your limbs torn from-"

"Caius, please," Aro interrupted softly, forcing me to sit back down. "I have the situation under control."

Obediently, I sat down, but my anger did not decrease. Chelsea quickly looked away from me, fear still glistening in her red eyes. I loathed her…oh God I hated her so much…

Aro spoke. "Chelsea, were you in fact aware of the bond between Caius and Bella Swan?"

The second he said _her _name I knew I'd flinch. Still, I forced my rage to level to hear Chelsea's answer. She seemed to hesitate at first, but she admitted, "Well…yes. I was. I knew they were planning for her to return to the Volturi at some time. But it was just business for me at the time. I was paid to erase her memories of Master Caius, and I should not have agreed to it, but I did. And I could not break my word. The girl, Bella, I visited her about two nights after she left here. The bond was so strong- it did not look breakable."

"But it was," Aro finished simply.

"Y-Yes," Chelsea weakly glanced up at me. I gave her a mean scowl. "Bella… she said she wanted to come back. She wanted me to take her back to the Volturi, but…but I couldn't…"

Sharp pains ripped through me. All this time… I believed I hated _her _because she did not return to me like she promised. But I never hated her, I knew I did not hate her. I still…I still loved her. I could remember the anxiety running through my mind the first couple years she did not return- the excuses I made up. Perhaps her father was seriously ill, and she had to stick with him for a while longer. No problem. Then, the first years turned into more years. And those 'more years' drove me into serious madness.

All day and night long, would I stand upon the deck, waiting until I would pick up her scent in the city, or for Demetri to inform me she had returned. I would not eat. I would not write. I would not even join Aro and Marcus into the throne room. Repeating to myself over and over she would be back in the morning- ready for our new lifestyle together.

And after those few maddening years, when I was finally convinced by Aro that she was never going to return, I fell completely depressed. Marcus accompanied me several times to try and at least make me feel the least bit of happiness, yet that never occurred since it was clear in his eyes that the bond between me and Bella Swan and been broken forever. For the rest of the years- I began to grow so _angry_. Angry at absolutely anything that stopped in my path- anything that wasn't in order to the Volturi. And I had only one weakness during that anger state. _Her_.

"Because of her mental shield and the great bond, it took my best strength to finally erase her memories," Chelsea finished, her head hung miserably. "I then was paid and I returned to the Volturi. The deed was completed."

I leapt up again, growling furiously. "_You DO NOT deserve to live for doing such a thing!_ _Because of YOU she forgets all her good memories- taking me- taking EVERYONE- down with her! It's OVER now since-_"

"It's not over."

Disbelief was planted on my expression. "_What_?"

"I could only do so much to the bond," Chelsea responded, looking me dead in the eye, showing me she was not lying about what she was saying. "I couldn't make her completely forget her memories of you."

My eyes widened at this fact. "You…you mean…she remembers some of her memories?"

"Well, technically, no," Chelsea erased the hope in my mind. "She will remember you as a Volturi Master, as she does to Master Aro and Marcus. She still has her memories of when she rescued Edward Cullen. She remembers staying with the Volturi but nothing specific. It is all blurry to her, if I read her memories correctly after they were erased."

I pulled back. "Then…she only has bad memories of me. How I wanted her executed than leave Volterra alive."

Chelsea reluctantly nodded. I sat back down, trying my best to mask my disappointment and inner distress. She then spoke again, her voice higher spirited. "Unless…"

"Unless what?" I demanded suspiciously.

"Unless…" she paused. "_Yes_. That's right. Unless you have some sort of possession…something that would spark her memory of her time here. Then…_yes_, then her memory would return. But it would have to be a strong reminder…a very strong reminder."

While I was still pondering this, Aro spoke up. "I do not understand… why can you not merely take the spell off of the girl, Chelsea?"

"My power does not work that way, master," Chelsea sighed. "I wish it did, and I would absolutely-"

"_The locket_!" I suddenly shrieked, causing everyone to snap their heads around to look at me. I did not care. "If this spell to breaking off the gift is correct, I have the locket to spark her memories."

"A locket you say, master?"

"It has a tune inside. She will remember it. I vow she will!"

"Ah yes, I remember those charming love materials you two possessed," Aro stepped in. "I never understood why you never bought me one. But anyway, it would be pleasing to know that she would remember the tune, no matter if the locket is yours and not hers."

Suddenly, I felt my insides tighten. "My locket…it plays a different tune then hers. Listening to my tune might not be strong enough to break off the gift."

"Then let us hope she still possesses her own locket."

* * *

**BELLA**

"Dude!" I felt my teeth grind together at the weight of Emmett on my back. "Do the words 'low fat diet' mean anything to you?"

Emmett laughed and jumped off, smirking so arrogantly. "That'll teach you to bet against me. Told' ja you couldn't carry me across the lawn."

"In case you forgot, _I did not agree to that bet_," I arched my back, luckily feeling no pain. "Damn…you know, if I was still human and you did that, I'll guarantee I'd be dead right now."

Emmett continued to smirk. "Not my problem. You need to work out more."

I glared. "Oh- _great idea, Emmett_! Why don't I start by chucking you to the nearest jerk-stop?"

"Wanna bet?"

"Emmett, Bella, please," Carlisle suddenly appeared at the front doorway, Edward at his side. He held out an arm towards me, which I immediately leaned in. Carlisle must have just finished hearing about the attacks, and wanted everyone to gather to hear what he had to say about it. Edward steered me inside, flashing me a slight smile from the corner of his eye. I smiled back. I loved this guy.

After everyone was in the living room, Carlisle stood up, drawing everyone's attention. "Edward informed me about the identical attacks a few moments ago. I feel that everyone should talk about this together, seeing that the attacks are more than a hundred people killed each time."

"What are they, Carlisle?" Alice asked, her pixie-like features dead serious.

"They must be vampires," Carlisle answered, facing the rest of us. "No amount of humans could escape the number of police searching for them. What I am not sure about, is if these vampires are newborns or not."

Esme said. "Newborns would not be smart enough to murder the same amount of people at each stop they take."

"Newborns or not, they need to be stopped," Jasper finished, a few others nodding in agreement.

"Perhaps we should backtrack this," Carlisle spoke. "These _creatures _may not be ours to stop. I'm sure the Volturi has already heard about this, and have send guards to end them."

"And what if they haven't?" Rosalie asked.

"Then we do not know," Carlisle replied. "I for one think we should write to them, see if they are going to take care of this situation before we are."

"I say we leave the Volturi out of this matter, as I have said before," Edward stood up, shaking me off his arm. "The vampires obviously are after _us_, therefore ours to take care of. Carlisle?"

Carlisle's agreement did not come. Instead, he sighed. "Alice, would you fetch me some paper? I need to write a letter."

Scowling, Edward abruptly left the room. He did that when he was angry now a days. And I hated it when he was angry.

Deciding to follow and comfort him, I stood up, but Emmett grabbed my wrist and forced my to sit back down. His eyes were serious. "Leave him be. He'll be okay."

I nodded once, disappointed that even I could not help Edward in his time of need.

* * *

**CAIUS**

I found myself grinning like an imbecile in my throne. I was going to bring her back to me. She would be mine once again, and my life would be restored. All I had to do was find her locket as Chelsea instructed.

"Hmph," Aro mumbled in one of his thrones as he scanned through a newspaper. Usually, I would scowl at him, wondering how he found a vile mortal paper so interesting, but I was too overjoyed to care at the moment. He went on. "And another comes and goes."

"What are you talking about, Aro?" I said.

He replied. "Well it seems this article from the grand North America has been having some attacks, like so." He showed me a picture in this newspaper with some sort of sick 'S' sign. "I wonder if Carlisle knows about this."

"Wait…where did you find a _North America _newspaper?" I frowned.

"Demetri fetches them for me when he's in the neighborhood," Aro said merely. "As I was saying… by the assaults on the humans, it must be vampires behind it, therefore-"

"Vampires?" my eyebrows raised. "Then you must send guards to destroy them at once. They have been violating the Volturi rules."

"Oh, I know," Aro waved me away. "I've already sent Corin and Santiago to do the job. It will be no problem for them. They left about four days ago."

"Very well," was all I said.

Aro continued reading the newspaper along with Marcus, while I began planning how I was going to return Bella's memories. I dear hoped to God she was not already married to that…sick Cullen boy. That would be disastrous. I would not allow it. The Cullen boy would have to fight me himself if he wanted to win _my _love.

Suddenly, the Volturi doors burst open, so suddenly, we all nearly jumped in our thrones. A pale figure with a tangle of fiery red hair came limping in, breathing wildly, red eyes wild with horror and shock. Demetri and Felix quickly aided the figure by her arms- until I realized Felix was holding her waist because she had no right arm. I recognized the figure immediately.

"Corin!" Aro addressed rather surprisingly. "My dear Corin- what on earth has become of you? And where's Santiago?"

The red haired guard wearily looked up, eyes torn in distress and agony.

"H-He's dead!"

* * *

**Wow…when was the last time I updated? Two weeks ago? Sorry 'bout that. High school sucks. And I'm like the only freshman in my Algerbra 2 class, what's the deal with that? Seriously.**

**Anyway, hope you guys like the chapter. Seems these attackers aren't as easy to kill off as the Cullens and Volturi are expecting…**

**Review ^^**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

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**CAIUS**

"What do you mean- he's dead?" Aro demanded, almost furiously. "He cannot be dead! He is one of my strongest guards!"

"T-They killed him…" Corin croaked, eyes flashing with pain.

"Who?" Aro stepped forward. "_Who _killed him!"

Corin weakly looked up at us again. "I…I'm not sure, master. There were so many of them…"

"Were they the attackers in North America?" Aro was clearly going berserk. "Tell me!"

"S-Santiago and I tracked them down- they were not hard to find," Corin started. "They were in the middle of feeding…slashing the heads right off their victims. W-We could not count them- there were too many of them. We were watching them from miles away but…but then were yanked from behind. They dragged us into the battlefield of hungry creatures. Master- whoever they were- _what_ever the were- they are powerful. Not an average army we can take down with only a couple guards. We'll need everyone to stop them. I was lucky I escaped with my life."

"How did you escape?" Marcus suddenly spoke up, suspicion in his expression.

"Well…they took me before someone," Corin went on. "Me _and _Santiago. They took us to there master- I assume. He must have recognized the symbol on our robes, because he wanted me to send a message back to you. To all of you. Santiago, he said, was not needed since he already had a messenger. So they-they killed him!"

"Good God, Corin," Marcus said. "What did they do to your arm?"

Aro interrupted whatever she was going to say. "What was the message? I must know what it is!"

"He said…" Corin uttered. "…_Enjoy it now; it won't be yours much longer_."

* * *

**BELLA**

I watched anxiously as Alice dropped the letter into the mailbox outside of the post office, making it clear we could not turn back on the decision now. It was a nice day in Forks- silver sky but no rain. For some reason, Alice wanted to walk to the post office instead of drive, and I, having no where to go, decided to accompany her.

She slightly sighed and turned around, heading back down the sidewalk. "I have to admit, Bella…I'm a bit with Edward on this one. I don't think it would solve any problems to involve the Volturi."

"Why?" I pressed. "Did you have a vision of us fighting or something?"

"No…" Alice replied. "In truth…I have not seen any visions. Or have focused on them, anyway."

"You must have seen _something_," I didn't buy her white lie.

She sighed again. "Well…I suppose it is unlike me to keep secrets from my own family. I have seen a small vision. There were many vampires…I could not count. They couldn't have been the attackers- because I recognized some of the faces. Esme…Rosalie…Jazz…all of them. And then I saw the Volturi, all except…all except you and…"

"And who?" I frowned.

"Never mind," Alice said quickly.

"No, tell me."

"You and… Lord Caius. One of the Volturi leaders."

My brow furrowed in confusion at the mention of that certain vampire. "You mean the one who hated my guts and wanted me dead?" Alice nodded, and I continued. "If I'm not in your vision- does that mean I'm… not alive anymore or something?"

"Just because you aren't in it does not mean you're dead," Alice had a slight smile on her lips. "You know that. But that's not the main thing…it means that we are most likely going to meet up with the Volturi in the future. Perhaps group together with them to help stop the attackers. Edward has read my mind, you see. He has seen what I have seen."

"Is that why he's so upset?" I asked.

"Most likely," Alice finished. "Edward does not associate well with Volturi. Especially after that incident when we stuck you with them alone many years ago."

I remembered. The whole experience in Volterra was always fuzzy to me- but everyone had memories like that. Edward had told me he had picked me up from the hospital after they had gotten rid of the newborns because Lord Caius had been furious with me and stuck me in the face.

"But I avenged you," Edward had assured me, his chin on my head as he rocked me to sleep. "He now knows how perfectly well I can come to killing him. He will never bother you again- I will make sure of it."

I remembered feeling deathly chilly at knowing this. That same blonde haired vampire wanted me dead and almost did so himself while I was kept in Volterra. I remembered feeling so unbelievably lucky to have someone like Edward to avenge me…keep me safe…

And now, Alice had a vision of us grouping together. That meant I would have to face my abuser again- although this time I wouldn't be alone and I was now a strong vampire. Edward was right. He would never hurt me again.

But even vampires could be wrong.

* * *

**CAIUS**

The guards of the Volturi seemed annoyingly grave that rest of the day. I assumed that it was because of learning that one of their brothers was dead and never returning. I couldn't help but feel a bit grave myself. Santiago was headstrong and brave. He would be missed and the attackers would have no mercy for destroying him.

But first…I had to get _her _back.

While I planned this out, Aro was reading a letter with a familiar scent on it. He seemed to be reading it for hours until he looked up and turned to both Marcus and I. "A letter from the Cullens."

A sudden wave of excitement washed through my being. The letter could have been from _her_. It may have news of her. I snatched the letter from Aro formally, quicker than Marcus.

_Dear Lords of Volterra,_

_My family and I have crossed over a series of identical attacks that seem to be leading closer and closer to Forks. We were unsure whether or not we should be ending the lives of the attackers, or the job has already been settled by the Volturi._

_If not, we should meet to talk about this. The numbers of people killed in these attacks are numerous, therefore we may need a plan at stopping them. Please return a letter or some sort of communication back, we would greatly appreciate it._

_Edward and Bella, in addition, wish me to invite you their wedding, on the 23th of August._

_Your friend,_

_Carlisle_

When Aro had seen I had finished the letter, he took it back and handed it to Marcus. "They do not know how powerful they are, it seems."

"What do you suggest?" Marcus raised an eyebrow.

Aro folded his pale hands together. "I suggest…we do as Carlisle proposes. Meet with them to talk about this. Perhaps we will accompany Caius when he returns to Forks. You would not mind that, would you Brother?"

I didn't know what was worse: The whole Volturi was going to be with me when I would try to bring her back and our opponent was strong, or the fact my love was getting married to that sick Cullen _boy_.

The second option, for sure.

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**I swear, I wanna strangle high school, if it's possible. SO MUCH WORK! Ugh well it's a short chapter but it's something. Please review ^^**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

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**CAIUS**

The great skies of Volterra were buried in gray clouds and light mist, as I watched from the nearby window. Just like I was inwardly feeling, I thought to myself. _My _Bella Swan was engaged to that ridiculous and pathetic Cullen boy, and she probably loved him, having not the slightest clue who she really was supposed to be with. Then again, this was my fault. I should have kept Chelsea on a leash, for the sly things she had done to all those people.

I forced myself back to my studies, knowing that if I put more thought into it, I'd be inwardly bleeding for decades of hours. But one thing was for sure- I had to go North America. I had to try and save her from Cullen's grasp while I still could. The Volturi would accompany me, but not for my reason. I'd have to work on my mission alone.

Now then, back to the Historic-

"Hello."

Startled by the voice, my head snapped up to the intruder.

She softly giggled, her pale fingers brushing over her pink shell lips. "Told you I would scare you when you weren't expecting it."

"If there is no crucial reason you why you have entered my personal quarters without permission, Rosalyn, I must ask you to leave immediately," I told the vampress in a very irritated tone.

The new recruit to the Volturi merely strolled to edge of the desk, smirking radiantly. "But I wish to speak to you, Master Caius."

I fully looked up at her in the eye at that point. Aro transformed not five years ago, when he presented her to both Marcus and I. I was repulsed at the fact that she was made to replace Bella Swan, and Didyme, for Marcus's matter. She only decent trait the vampress had was beauty. _Long_, trailing, sun-golden hair, and perfect shaped face, that always seemed to glow when she smiled. Despite her attractiveness, she disgusted me. I would _never_, under the right mind, think of her more than a foolish mistake to the Volturi. "What of, dare I ask?"

"I just wanted to…_explain_," Rosalyn purred. "how I think you the best of the Volturi masters."

"I am somewhat bothered by what you are leading up to."

She merely continued to smile. "Well, master…Master Aro tells me you are need of a wife and...well, I-"

"Whatever you are going to continue on, stop," I said firmly. "What Aro said is none of your business, in fact I am quite suspicious of where you truly heard that from, but it is of now, untrue. I do not need a woman anymore. I plan to have one when we travel to North America."

"But why search for one there when you already have one here?" Rosalyn pressed. "Master, I am here to serve you. I will do everything you command me to do. I will never fail you, and I am here. You need not to search and-"

"Stop."

Rosalyn stopped talking obediently.

"If you are to be married to one of the Volturi masters, it will never be I," I fiercely tried to make clear. "There is only one woman for me, and I vow to never choose another. She is the only one who satisfies me and always will, when I fetch her in North America."

"But, master, surely _this woman _cannot love you as much as I," The vampress suddenly place both her hands on my shoulders. "I assure you, master, I will never let you down, never leave your side. I can satisfy you much better than she ever-"

Abruptly, I pulled away, all the way to the other side of the desk. The vampress stiffened, a bit of disappointment in her features. I glared at her, and spoke fiery. "Ever do something as disrespectful as you have done, or say _anything _repulsive about the woman I love again, you will be severely punished. Aro does not eliminate Volturi members easily, but he will consider it if I speak to him about your actions. Consider this a warning. Now, leave my presence."

* * *

**BELLA**

"So these Volturi people…are coming here?"

I looked over my shoulder to see Bree's expression. She didn't seem to be focused on the prey before us, but considering the fact she wanted to go hunting alone with me, I guess it made sense she wasn't interested in food.

"That I've heard, yes," I answered her. "Carlisle received a letter from Aro, one of the Volturi masters, saying that they will come here to help with the attackers. Apparently, the Volturi have already sent a couple guards after them, and one of them was murdered in the attempt to finish them off."

Bree merely nodded, fear deflecting throughout her golden orb eyes. "Will they really help us? Edward said…they're extremely dangerous and they tried to kill you in particular."

"True…" I said. "But hey, if they'll help put an end to all these attacks, I guess it's worth being on the same side."

"Okay…"

"C'mon now, it can't be that scary," I said, much to her embarrassment. "Just because we're going to be on the same side as them, it doesn't mean we have to hold hands or anything. All I'm going to do is hide behind Edward and use my power if needed."

"I do have some experience hiding behind people during fights…"

"That's the spirit," I smiled at her, but mentally clunked my own head after I turned away. So much for being a good role model in front of our newest recruit.

"But don't these Volturi people…like, eat humans?"

"…Oh yeah."

"We can't let them hunt here in Forks!"

"I know, Bree, I know. Carlisle might have an answer for that one."

"You rely on Carlisle for a lot of things."

"Um, thanks?"

"Sorry. And when are they coming?"

"I don't know that one either. Aro said in his letter that they would start packing immediately so…it probably won't be long. They do have to get here fast, so we can put an end to more attacks going to happen in the future."

Bree nodded in agreement. She then focused her gaze back to where the deer had been standing, and to our surprise it was gone. It's scent was nowhere in the air. Must have slipped away from us while we were discussing stuff. Bree looked back up at me. "Um…where did it go?"

"I was hoping you would know!"

Laughing, the two of us sprung off the tree branch to find a _different _kind of dinner for the day.

* * *

**Well, I guess this chapter just confirms that the Volturi and the Cullens will be grouping together, and to compare both Caius and Bella's relationships with their clan's newest recruits. **

**And you know the drill- would've updated earlier if it weren't for school XDD btw, I updated chapter 3 of "Stuck with Her" if anyone's interested in reading Caius's POV for "Stuck in Volterra." Review ^^**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

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**CAIUS**

"Brother, are you about ready to depart?"

Without regarding my enthusiastic superior standing in my doorway, I merely spoke. "I have been ready, Aro."

"There is nothing you wish to bring other than the clothes on your back?" Aro questioned, his eyes wandering around the room, expecting to see some type of luggage equipment. When he found nothing, he went on. "Have you not thought of bringing your beloved a beautiful bouquet when you meet again?"

I scoffed. "There is no doubt you have the strangest way of thinking out of any being in the world, Aro."

"But bringing flowers always makes a woman feel loved inside," Aro pressed, his hands on the edge of my desk. "I bring flowers to Sulpicia, and she absolutely adores them."

"Didn't she burn the daises you gave her, saying that the daisy was the 'flower of death?'"

Aro thought this over. "Well…let's hope Bella hasn't done flower research in ancient Russia."

"Even if I was in the mood to _bring her flowers_, it would make her suspicious," I said boldly. "After all…she doesn't even remember me or the times we spent together…"

"She will," Aro insisted softly, giving me an assuring smile and then headed back towards the door. Once he left, my doubts arose. What if she didn't have her locket? What if it was long gone and I didn't have a way to make her remember me? What if she would never come back to me…?

My expression hardened. No, I thought. I wouldn't lose her to the Cullens, not a second time. She was going to remember me, and everything would be as it was all those years ago. She would never leave me.

Not again.

* * *

**BELLA**

The sky was dark as Edward and I both took a walk in the woods. It had to be about four or five in the morning, with twilight and the dawn soon to come. One of my arms was looped in his, the two of us walking the perimeter. He had asked me to join him not too long ago, his expression giving out the fact he had so many things on his mind.

Suddenly he stopped our pace as we neared the top of the hill, almost abruptly. He loosened his grip on my arm and took a couple steps ahead before turning to look me in the eye. "Bella…"

"Edward?" I acknowledged back, unsure what he was leading up to.

He sighed. "I just want to be sure on something. You love me, do you not?"

"With all my heart," I said truthfully, still frowning.

"Then…you still want to get married. Right?"

Unable to stand this anymore, I said as softly as possible, "Edward, what is this leading up to?"

"Bella, I'm just…_worried _for you when the Volturi arrive shortly," he admitted. "You knew what they did to you in Volterra. I'm not sure I could stand them being around you after that. You could get hurt, or worse."

I felt something blossom inside me at his words. I loved how he was always so worried for me. "Edward, please. Whatever that will happen to me is really not the important thing. The important thing is that we will save hundreds of people about to be killed by the attacker's clutches."

"Your safety is the most important thing in my eyes," Edward stated.

"Then what do you want to do?" I pressed. "You want me to…like…avoid them as much as possible? The Volturi?"

Edward's face brightened like I got the correct answer to a million dollar game show. "Yes! Bella, you must do this. I don't want them…_any _of them, near you during this quest. Stay with me. Do not get close to them. They may be on our side this time, but I still do not trust them."

"I never planned to go near them after what happened, actually," I gave him a small smile. He smiled back, wider than I expected him to. Suddenly, he strode forward and wrapped both of his arms around me, pulling me close. I embraced him back, stunned, but willingly.

"They will never hurt you or me again," Edward assured me, pulling away. "I will make sure of it."

I gave him another small smile as I re- looped my arm in his and headed back down the mountain to the house. We had to help prepare for when the Volturi would arrive- it would not be long now. And I would do what Edward wanted me to do, I would stay with him at all times. You could never be too careful when it came to the Volturi, especially that horrid Lord Caius.

As we walked on, I could swear out of the corner of my eye I saw Edward smirking.

* * *

**CAIUS**

Twelve of the Volturi guards stayed behind to watch over the palace and keep balance while us three leaders departed. The twenty rest of us were all cloaked and hooded as we left the city at midnight, when most of the mortals were asleep and unknown to our presence. We would have departed earlier, if it weren't for Sulpicia, who was complaining like an imbecile that she wanted to stay behind. But of course, Aro wouldn't settle for it, and dragged the witch along.

In addition to what shocked me, Aro insisted that Rosalyn accompany us. None of us wanted the wild new recruit here, that was clear. Still, no one seemed in the mood to ask Aro of his intentions, either did I, in fact.

The Volturi traveled on foot most of the journey, flitting and nightfall and walking human pace at daybreak. Neither Aro nor I wanted to risk the chance of a human catching us flitting, and then causing problems we did not need to deal with at the moment. It took the twenty of us to reach the town of Forks after a week of nonstop traveling.

It was raining, like I predicted. Bella always complained to me about how wet it was here, and I personally didn't like it anymore than she. Still, something inside me leapt when I realized we were finally to our destination, and to Bella, most importantly. And for the sake of it, I tried to catch her rather delightful scent at the Forks sign, but caught nothing.

"Felix, hand me the directions," Aro suddenly turned to the largest guard. "Carlisle gave me an exact location where to meet them."

Quickly, Felix handed him the letter with the Cullen's scent, and Aro then directed us into a series of trees. Another forest, I thought. Lovely.

The rain increased as we headed up the mountain, mud clutching to our feet and tips of our cloaks. Disgusting, was something I would've thought, except for the fact I was too anxious to see her. Right up this hill, I told myself, my pace quickening. _Right up this hill_.

Then we reached the top.

Through the rain, I could clearly see the Cullens standing on the other side of the long, muddy field. Their scent was strong, as I scanned over all seven of them. They too were soaked, but seem unaffected by / rain condition, and wore expressions of pride as we neared. They sickened me.

About thirty meters away from them, Aro stopped us.

A tall blonde figure then stepped out ahead of his family to greet us. "Greetings, my old friends," Carlisle gestured.

"And greetings to you, Carlisle," Aro said joyfully, and he glanced passed him towards the rest of the monsters. "As well as your beloved family."

"Yes," Carlisle merely said after a pause. "And we once again thank you for being so considerate to come all this way to help us in our time of need. We also apologize for the death of one of your guards. We know he was important to you all."

"Very important," Aro agreed. "But no matter. Working together to avenge my dear deceased soldier was necessary."

Carlisle nodded once, and then gestured to a wooden crate that was fairly large; hidden behind many of the tall trees in the forest. "Emmett, Jasper, Edward, and I put that together yesterday. We hope it will suit the many of you for the time being. We apologize if it is not to your liking, but it is well hidden and-"

"Not at all, Carlisle," Aro assured, fascination poking in his features. "It will suit us very nicely, indeed! And such rich material."

Carlisle seemed lost for words when Aro said that, and started explaining where their own base was and everything else. Meanwhile, I squinted through the rain and tried to search for her. I could not pick up the slightest trace of her scent- was she not here? Did they leave her at their house, away from me? Perhaps they-

Then I saw her.

I had obviously not noticed her before, hiding behind Edward Cullen. Her hair was long, as I remembered. Long and chocolate colored. Snowy skin that was much too pale than her albino, but still captured her beauty. Even through the rain, I could tell, from both the color of her face and the way she was standing, her eyes were a dashing gold. The girl I loved was a vampire.

A large part of me wanted to strangle each and every one of them for changing her- she didn't deserve to be damned like such! How _bloody dare _they! But my angry thoughts were overwhelmed by the fact that this was her- this was really her. No illusion, no dream. The true her. The real her.

But then again, how did I know she was the real Bella? They could've twisted her mind with lies for all I knew, made her different and as heartless as them. No, I told myself. Bella would never do something like that. And it was never asked to have her memories erased.

As I studied the woman I loved, she never gave me the slightest glance. Her figure moved out from behind the Cullen boy, and wrapped both her arms around his neck, fastening her own head on his chest as she watched Aro and Carlisle speak of the unimportance. She definitely did not remember me. Yet it felt so surprising to have her not notice me. She used to always look at me, mock me, _everything_.

Then, the Cullen boy wrapped his own arms around her waist, and murmured something in her ear that I couldn't catch. She smiled, widely, like she was about to laugh at his statement, and then suddenly pecked him on the cheek before returning her gaze back to Aro and Carlisle. Pain rolled through me as realization slapped me in the face.

She loved him, alright. Loved him so much, like the letter had indicated. How could she look so happy when I was not there with her? _How?_

But more importantly…how could I do this mission? Doubt flooded through me as I answered my own question. I couldn't do it. I knew I'd never be able to do what I came to do. She loved him, no matter what I thought or anyone else thought. She thought she belonged with _him_, and truly, who was I to change that fact?

Ripping him away from her would make her unhappy.

As would it make me.

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**I really hated it when every my dad WASN'T on the computer- and I had a LOAD of homework to do! Ugh, that was annoying. But today I finally finished my hw early, and got to write this chapter.**

**And yes, this chapter was a bit squished. I really didn't want to leave you guys with a cliffie, like right before he sees her, caz that would just be plain mean of me XD. The part where they traveled to Forks was rushed, just because I really had no idea how they'd get there and there was no info to help me on that in "Breaking Dawn."**

**Anyway, hope you like the chapter and PEACE OUT! Review ^^**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

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**BELLA**

"I think we should have swords when we fight them," Emmett began. "That way we look all professional and awesome like in that one movie-"

"Emmett, please focus," Carlisle said in an irritated tone, gathering the newspapers in a formal stack. "Would someone do the honor and take these all to Aro? It would probably be best for them to know as much details on the situation as we do. Anyone?"

"Bella wants to do it," Emmett jeered.

Before I could make a funny jeer back to him, Edward said abruptly, "Bella is _not _going over there. Especially not alone. Here, Carlisle. I'll do it."

I don't know what made me object so quickly, but I put a hand on my fiancée's shoulder. "But Edward…I thought you were going with Alice and Jasper hunting. They're waiting for you."

"Are you saying you actually want to go up there?" Edward then hissed back at me, causing me to cringe backwards. I hated it when I made him upset.

"Leave her the hell alone, Edward," Rosalie suddenly stepped forward, a menacing scowl on her features. "If it bothers you so much, I'll personally go with up there with Bella, and make sure nothing happens to her."

Everyone turned towards the golden haired vampire in shock, eyes wide and jaws dropped. Edward's own jaw only tightened and he said very maliciously. "No."

Rosalie glared back at him, and seemed to be screaming the hell out of him through her mind. I honestly didn't want to know what she was secretly telling him, nor did I want to go up to where the Volturi was staying. Especially without Edward. He wanted me away from them at all times, and I was happy to obey those rules.

Finally, Edward snarled out loud. "_Fine_."

Rosalie sneered proudly. "That's what I thought." She then turned to me. "Well, lets get a move on. Emmett and I were going to catch up with Alice and Jasper shortly, and I am starving."

Unable to speak, I merely nodded, grabbed the newspapers, and followed the beautiful vampress out the doorway. I wasn't sure what made her suddenly protect me like that; she never did so in the past. Things had gotten better between us since I was transformed, but I still felt like I was on her list of 'things I want to kill.'

The walk up the mountain was silent, almost _too _silent. I broke the silence by pretending to cough and said. "Um…Rosalie? You didn't have to do that, you know."

"Yes I did," she said confidently. "He is an arrogant son of a _you know what_, and he deserves to be knocked around every time he decides to play the boss."

I decided not to correct her on how Edward treating me harshly wasn't what I was referring to, but why she was making me face the vampires who abused me when the Cullens needed help protecting me. Just the thought sent waves of fear pricking at my skin.

But what did I know? They might not even be there…

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**CAIUS**

Silence overflowed the wooden cabin as I scanned through the Civil War history book, trying to keep my thoughts off the very reason I decided to decline the hunting trip with my clan. All day, yesterday, it murdered me knowing I could never rip her away from the Cullen boy and right back to me, where she rightfully belonged. The Cullen boy would never allow it, that I could handle, but more importantly, Bella wouldn't allow it.

How the bloody hell was I going to complete the mission I had been dreaming of for at least fifteen years? How could I just strip her of her happiness, even if it was with someone else? It did not seem right, not something I could do. Not to her, anyway.

"You are giving up too easy, brother," Aro had told me the other day. "So Bella Swan adores Edward Cullen currently. That did not stop you before."

"I know," I had snarled back. "But it seemed so much easier in my head. I cannot explain it well, but I seemed to have some sort of illusion of her waiting for me, not pinning over _him_ so _ardently_."

"Then what do you plan to do about it, brother?" Aro had then demanded.

"I don't know," I said out loud, setting the book down on the desk, and placing my face in both my hands. God, how I despised being so confused…

Suddenly, a knock at the wooden door broke the silence.

I looked up from my place, frowning. It couldn't be Aro or any of the rest of the Volturi, they would just come in, as rude as they were at times. That could only mean it was one of those _Cullens_, the creatures I truly did not want to speak to at the moment. Going back to my book, I ignored the second knock at the door, and continued on with my reading.

The door eventually opened on its own accord, and someone stepped in, with a Cullen scent all over them. God, how I loathed that smell. Hated everything about it. The person then set some kind of paper on Aro's desk, from the corner of my eye, something that caught my attention. Slowly, I looked up at the person. Something inside me tightened.

It was her.

She was up close now, closer than last time we encountered each other just right outside this very cabin. Her chocolate colored hair had gotten longer than I had noticed apparently, almost to her waist. As much as I hated the fact that she was a vampire now, a damned monster, she was still so beautiful. So beautiful as I remembered her. She still had not noticed me in the room, but she didn't seem to be looking for anyone anyway. It was only she and I. Alone.

Then, after the very second she made the papers were safely on the desk, she turned on her heel and began to head back towards the door.

"Hello."

The word slipped out of my mouth abruptly, unconsciously. I don't know what made me call out to her, make her notice me, but it did certainly did get her attention. Her face immediately jerked to where I was sitting, golden orbs for eyes gazing at me in utter shock.

"Er…hi," was all she said. She seemed very alarmed at my presence, almost frightened. I couldn't calculate what to say back to her. All I really wanted to say was, _Bella, you love me, as I do to you. Come back to me. _But of course it would never be that simple. Instead, she spoke before I did. "I-Is Aro here?"

"He is out hunting in another city," I said automatically. "Along with the rest of the Volturi."

She paused before nodding. "Okay…can you see that he gets those newspapers? They are all about the attacks and everything."

"Aro has a set of them already. You can take them back."

She didn't speak, but merely stood there in fear. Had I scared her? Had I been too harsh with her? Immediately, I walked towards the desk myself and handed them to her. She took them cautiously, refusing to meet my gaze. My eyes studied her face softly, unable to look away.

Unfortunately, she noticed. "Why…are you looking at me like that?"

I quickly dropped my gaze. "Forgive me. You just…seem different from the last time we met."

"Different?" she repeated, clearly confused. "How so?"

"I do not know," I said. Truthfully, I did notice something was different about her. What happened to her personality? Her wit? Did it vanish like the rest of her memories about me? My God Chelsea…

"I'm sorry, I have to go," she then turned away from me, heading towards the door. "My friend is waiting for me. Um… see you later."

"Good day…" I returned curtly, and watched her leave with a great pain awakening. When I was certain she was gone I finished. "…my love."

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**BELLA**

"Was anyone in there?" Rosalie asked the second I started back down the mountain.

"Yeah…Lord Caius was the only one," I said, confusion still overwhelming me of the previous seconds.

"Oh," Rosalie said casually. "Did he say anything?"

"Just that Aro didn't need the newspapers. They already have some."

"Well now that that is taken care of, I'm going to meet Emmett and the others hunting," she announced, and turned to me. "You want to come?"

"Nah…I'm going to head back to the fort. Meet all of you back there?"

"Whatever," the golden vampress merely shrugged and took off.

Once I was alone, thoughts buzzed into my head like mad. My God how he scared me in there…why didn't I notice him before? He could've snuck up from behind me and murdered me for all I knew. Just like he tried to do in Volterra.

But he didn't.

In fact, he was polite. Far too polite than I would've imagined. I thought the vampire hated me, loathed my guts and wanted me dead. Was he trying to make me let my guard down so he'd have a chance to kill me? No matter…I was _not _seeing him again. Never seeing the man who had nearly killed me in my past, even though it was so long ago…

And what did he mean? I seemed different to him? Did he mean not covered in bruises that he did to me himself?

Probably, I decided.

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**Wrote it in like two hours. New record for me ;D **

**So yeah Caius and Bella first real encounter ^^ Review**


	9. Chapter 9

**Updating monthly is something I usually never do- I'm sorry for the wait. High school's been an ass and I started soccer tryouts today for the school team. So far I made the first round- wish me luck XDD Anyway, here's a chapter for you guys**

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**Chapter 9**

**CAIUS**

That following morning, Aro dragged Marcus and I with him to discuss the whereabouts of the attackers and what our attack line would be. About half of the Cullens appeared in the Volturi cabin, Carlisle and his wife, and two of his sons that did not include Edward. I remembered the disappointment flooding through me when I realized Bella was not with them.

I had actually spoken to her just the other day, and I was completely unprepared for it. Still, I managed not to frighten her too much, but there definitely was something wrong with her. Sure, she was now bright and undeniably beautiful, but she was dead and hallow instead. The Bella I knew, the Bella I loved, always had something hilarious to say and speak her mind about things.

Edward Cullen must have gotten to her.

The thought made my tight on the chair I seated myself in tremble. How dare he. How dare them all. Suddenly, everyone at the table glanced at me curiously and suspiciously.

"Brother Caius," Aro said in a high tone. "Are you quite alright?"

I despised being the center of attention. I quickly withdrew my hand from the chair and composed myself properly. "Proceed."

The Cullens and my fellow Volturi leaders then turned away from me and began again as I commanded. What was I going to do about her? For sure it was worth bringing her back but she would most likely fight it. I wasn't part of her life anymore, it had all been replaced by that Cullen kid. And she was happy with that.

The more noble and realistic part of me argued to just leave her be and do my part in helping bring these mysterious attackers to an end. She was happy without me, and who was I but this evil Volturi master to her. She did not want me, and I should move on.

But I never could move on. Not after these fifteen dreadful years alone. She was now my life, and pretty much everything to me. If I left her alone, I'd end up like poor old Marcus, and I'd be miserable for the many centuries I had left to go. She was supposed to be with me.

She was _always_ supposed to be with me.

Once Aro adjourned the meeting between the Cullens, I decided to step outside. I needed to get to a place to clear my mind and figure things out, and besides, the look Rosalyn was giving me was making me extremely uncomfortable. I took a random path down between drunken trees and shrubs in the forest, trying to think things through. I thought of nothing.

Finally, I came towards the peak where the Cullen's house was shown below. It was nice looking, I had to admit, but nothing could withstand the sheer beauty of the Volturi palace. I barely even missed that place, however. Thousands of years living there had really drained my interest of it. Suddenly, I realized two figures were emerging from the house, and heading towards a silver vehicle in the driveway.

I awakened.

It was her.

And him, I realized with much disappointment. He was making her laugh, of course. I didn't bother trying to hide myself as I watched from afar what he was trying to do with her.

"I have something for you," Edward smiled at her widely, earning him another laugh.

"Edward, stop," she smiled back. "You don't have to get me anything, you know that."

"Think of it as an early birthday present."

"But it's not until Tuesday!"

"Early birthday present," he repeated, and then stuffed his hands in his coat where he withdrew a rather ravishing looking box with a red tone. I saw her eyes widen as he opened the top to reveal a beautifully crafted necklace, covered in diamonds. They dazzled in the sunlight.

"It…It's beautiful!" she gasped and embraced him warmly, her back towards me. He embraced her back, and clipped the beautiful necklace around her neck. Dread piled through me and I flirted with the idea of sprinting off until I was lost in these woods forever. But I was stuck to my spot on the cliff, watching helplessly as the girl I loved hugged the man I loathed.

And I knew for sure that this man I loathed knew I had been standing here the entire time.

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**UNKNOWN POV**

"My Lord, he is strapped up."

Slowly, my firm gaze upon the slashing of pathetic mortals turned towards my side where I regarded the vampire before me. "Well done. Bring him to me."

"Yes, my lord."

Drawing a smirk as my fingertips brushed my lips, I watched gleefully as three of my strongest followers brought towards the boy with golden eyes, struggling wildly at his bonds. They pushed him at my feet where he breathed wildly, his eyes burning with hate.

"Jeremy's the name, right?" I asked politely, giving him the most sympathetic sneer. "I have heard stories about your kind, boy. You have a gift. A useful gift."

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about!" The boy spat at me, still breathing in rage.

"Oh, but you do. We all know your little secret, Jeremy."

The boy's eyes widened.

"You are a Child of the Moon," I stated clearly, so that all the followers slashing the screaming humans would hear me as well. The boy's eyes closed in defeat and he faced the ground.

He spoke in a rough voice. "Leave me and the town the hell alone you monsters."

"It was you who had brought them their fate," I said softly, and watched as the red-eyed followers snickered in return. "If you had not gotten yourself cursed and tried to hide yourself behind them, they would not be getting slashed like bloody animals, now wouldn't they? All one hundred and fifty seven of them. Such a shame. And your sister…oh yes, you're little sister seemed like such a happy little child, didn't she?"

"Samantha…" the boy croaked in disbelief. His expression then flared back to hatred as he again wriggled against his bonds. "What did you do to her?"

"Ah, well. I'd show you if I could, but, unfortunately too many pieces of her to search for at the time."

The boy then began to sob as he turned away from me, unable to hide his emotions from me. Smirking, I kneeled next to him. Children of the Moon were so easy to pinpoint. Too easy to get them on my side as well. Only one more little push and this boy would be under my control like the other five. Murmuring in the sobbing boy's ear, I said. "Now your mother, hm. That is another problem about to happen. Perhaps if you devote yourself to me and serve me as I wish… she will not share the same fate as your dear sister."

"Leave me _alone_!" he screamed, tears running down his cheeks.

"You think I do not know where she is currently?" I asked, and grabbed one of my follower's tracking gift to find her exaction location. Once it was found, I tossed the gift back and knelt down towards him again. "I know she's in Wisconsin…and about to get on her airplane back to you and your sister. It will be such a tragedy to have to send my followers to the airport and well…lets say give her a _nice_ welcome home."

The boy shuddered but declared. "I will never join you, you _savages_!"

Shrugging, I stood up again and called a few of my followers over. "Well, boys. It seems as though little Jeremy does not feel like cooperating tonight. His mother will be arriving in the airport soon. Would you clean that little mess up for us?"

"Of course, my lord," the first one said. The other two followed him back down a different alleyway, towards the destination. With one final, smirking glance at the boy, I started back towards the spray where I would mark our territory. Suddenly, the boy spoke up, his voice is a desperate utter.

"Wait!"

I grinned.

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**Well you guys get a little info on what's going on with the attackers * hint hint * and hope you guys liked the chapter and will be back for the next. Review ^^**


	10. Chapter 10

**Alright, go ahead and unleash the tomatoes on me for not updating sooner like I said I would. I deserve it. And again, I'm sorry for the wait. First excuse, I had more writer's block (argh), and the second excuse, I have high school soccer daily now. I made varsity XD Anyway- on with the tenth chapter!**

**Chapter 10**

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**CAIUS**

My reasons for despising the little rain town called Forks grew when I spent the last two hours trying to hunt in the forest. The animals were scarce, it seemed, since I couldn't pick up on any type of scent. Either that, or the Cullens decided to keep all the food to themselves.

Growling, I leapt off of the branch in a flash, heading towards another place to find food. I already felt like an imbecile stepping in a muddy puddle, and it angered me more knowing that I would have to stay out longer if I wanted to feed.

_Could always go back to hunting humans, _said something in the back of my mind.

_No_, I replied.

Peeling off the horribly disgusting piece of dried mud filth on my robes, I heard something crunch under my ruined shoe. Immediately, I tossed the dried mud behind me and removed where my foot was planted, squinting down at the object. I brushed away some of the mud and picked up from what it looked like, a diamond necklace.

The main diamond at the end was carved into a heart shape, with a couple smaller replicas on the sides. It looked like the kind of gift Aro would give Sulpicia, something extremely rare and would make a woman go speechless. Part of me wanted to bury the jewelry or rip it to pieces. It reminded me of the necklace Cullen boy gave to my love. And I hated _anything_ connected to him.

"God damn it…"

The voice startled me more than I'd like to admit, that I sprung up into the tree branch and whirled around. She was way to the other side of the forest yet I could see and hear her perfectly. Her chocolate colored hair was messy and knotted and her expression was scrunched up in guilt and worry, yet she still was beautiful and made my insides tighten at seeing her.

Why did she look so hurt, I asked myself. Did Cullen do this to her? The thought made my hand curl into a firm fist, until I saw her examining the ground as if she were searching for something. Blankly, I looked down at the necklace. Damn.

This _was _the necklace he gave her the other day. And she lost it on accident. I clamped my fingers around it as if I were to squeeze it so hard it would crumble to millions of pieces. I hated this thing even more.

But as much as I wanted to destroy it, I jumped off the branch and uncovered myself. She jumped back herself- gasping in surprise. Her horrified expression did not relax as she took in the fact that it was just she and I alone once more. I forced away the cringe when she looked at me like that.

Slowly, I held out the necklace to her.

Confusion then swept through her dead golden eyes, and then it turned to suspicion. "Er… how did you-"

"I stepped on it," I told her, trying not to sound too firm. "It is slightly damaged, for that I apologize."

She took a cautious step towards me, and leaned forward to take the necklace from my palm. I noticed how hard she was trying to not touch me or take another step closer. After it was in her own hands, she stepped back many feet away and fastened it securely around her neck. With one last polite smile, she then turned to leave.

"Would you happen to know a good place to hunt?" I called after her, desperate not to have her leave so soon. Slowly, she turned back towards me, frowning.

"You…you drink animal blood?" the way she made it sound was as if it were the most shocking thing in existence.

"That is what the golden eyes are for," I pointed out, and mentally punished myself for making her feel stupid. Of course, if she were her old self, she would've just sneered and made an arrogant jibe back at me.

"But…" she seemed at a lost for words. "…you're from the Volturi."

I could not catch myself from smiling at that one. "Yes, well, I am the only one who feeds off animals." And you're the reason I switched to animal blood, I wanted to add but I kept quiet.

Complete shock filled her senses, but she quickly regained herself and pointed north. "Well…um, there's a pretty good place a few miles that way. Edward and I just hunted there. But I stayed behind to find the…er, necklace."

"I see," I replied. "Would you mind showing me?"

Bella opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it. After a long silence, she said. "…I'm not sure if that's such a good idea. Edward will be wondering where I am…and…"

"Very well," I brushed past her. "But if I get lost, I'm blaming you."

Her expression was priceless. Then again, I couldn't believe what I was saying either. I had made a joke? Good God, she didn't remember anything about me acting like this, what the bloody hell was I doing? She probably thought I was a maniac- first I wanted her dead and the next second I was cracking a joke.

"Maybe I'm trying to get you lost," she then replied, with a smug grin. For an amazing second- she looked like she had before in Volterra, thinking she was all perfect and above me. Before I could enjoy it another moment, she seemed to realize what she did, and she quickly composed herself into her dead self and walked off, leaving me staring at her in the dust.

Quietly, I turned around as well and started towards the north part of the forest. Even if it were only for a slight moment, it felt so refreshing to see her smile after all these years.

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**EDWARD**

Before I could wonder another aggravating second where she was and why she hadn't returned yet, the door opened and closed behind her, a warm smile on her features. The necklace was beautifully shaped around her neck.

"You found it," I noticed.

"Yep," she answered, and kissed my cheek before heading upstairs. "You never told me that Lord Caius was a vegetarian like us."

Something inside me snapped and filled with dread as I watched her disappear into an upstairs room. I should never have left her to find her necklace alone. I _knew _something like this would happen. She'd run into that ignorant, no-good-

The sound of high heels interrupted my raging thoughts, and I didn't need to glance up to see who it was. She stopped right in front of me, her golden hair running down her back and that same annoyed expression on her face. It looked even more fierce than before. _I'm done_.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

_You know exactly what I'm talking about_, she replied through her head. _And I refuse to do anymore of your pathetic crap._

"And what made you suddenly change sides on me?" I raised an eyebrow.

_After what happened to me with Royce King, I would have never been more thankful to Carlisle, _she babbled fiercely. _Or Esme. Or Emmett. Especially, Emmett. I would never want him taken away from me, and the thought of it makes me want to sob and wish someone would be there to make sure I stayed with my love forever._

My eyes narrowed.

_I'm going to be that someone for Bella, Edward, _she continued. _What you've been scheming behind her back, what you've been doing to this family- I won't be part of it anymore. She deserves to be happy. Not that I can say the same for you._

Then, she turned on her heel and walked off abruptly, leaving me glaring in the spot she was standing in.

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**Kind of short, but something. Review ^^**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

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**BELLA**

"Okay, I'm thinking we should roll it up in a bun…" Alice explained as she twirled my long hair. "And then have a good amount of flowers pinned with it!"

I stared blankly at my reflection in the mirror as Alice finished clipping the pink and purple flowers in my hair. Sighing was the only answer I gave her as she waited for my reaction. Alice frowned as she watched me heave myself off the chair and undo my flowery hair.

"You really aren't into this wedding stuff, are you?" she noticed, her grin vanishing completely.

"I don't know," was all I said.

Alice sighed herself, gathering up all the flower clips in a pile. And like an 'on' switch, she beamed and ran up behind me. "No- wait! I got it! You'll definitely fall in love with this idea!"

_Seriously doubt that, _I thought back.

"Okay," Alice pushed me back in the chair and motioned her hands over my head like she was drawing a crown. "How about- we use the pearl headband Edward gave you last week, and have your beautiful hair only _partly _rolled up in a bun? Yeah? Won't that look so cute?"

I wasn't planning on answering her, but Rosalie still saved me when she walked in with a rather bored expression. "Emmett and Jasper went hunting and there's nothing to do. What are you two doing?"

"Wedding stuff."

"I'm out," Rosalie turned on her heel.

"Wait!" Alice called. "I seriously need your help on getting Bella in a happier mood! She's turned down every cute hair idea I have for her wedding day!"

"Can't blame her," Rosalie muttered.

I drifted off as the two started arguing. I had no idea why I felt so dead and irritated all the time now. I mean, why should I feel dead and irritated? Every day that went by meant it was closer to when I would get to marry Edward and be with him forever. Wasn't that a good thing?

Unconsciously, my eyes wandered the bedroom. Loads of tiny velvet colored boxes were everywhere, all holding some sort of precious jewelry from Edward. He had given me so many over the weeks. It was weird why he did all this for me. He knew he didn't need to treat me like a queen. Maybe that's why I was so irritated. Getting sick of all this unwanted jewelry.

"Rosalie, Alice, please," another voice interrupted my thoughts. Carlisle was standing in the doorway. "We need everyone down at the table for a meeting about the attacks."

"With Aro?" Alice asked.

"Yes," Carlisle said impatiently. "Hurry."

As I expected, none of them waited for me to join them. Even with their good nature, I was never requested to attend the meetings, and honestly, I didn't really care. It made Edward happy, and that's what mattered the most, I guess.

With nothing to do, I cleaned up all the flowers Alice had missed and shoved them rather lazily in my desk. My God, I hated those things. The Cullens mind as well be millionaires, spending all this jewelry and crap on the wedding. Damn…why was I in such a bad mood?

Taking out my sticky, I resumed reading the romance novel I started last week.

"Miss Bella?"

I knew I would always remember this moment- when Aro, the top leader of the all powerful Volturi vampires, nearly scared me to death by standing right in the doorway of my bedroom.

The novel tumbled from my grip and onto the floor as I struggled to compose myself, yet I couldn't help the surprise in my voice. "I…I didn't expect to…to see you there…"

His milky red eyes sparkled delightfully as he chuckled. "My! It seems I have startled you- for that I truly apologize. Well, I was just searching for Carlisle, he was not punctual for our scheduled meeting."

"I- I um, yeah I just saw him," I said quickly. "He went down…you know, like, down stairs a few minutes ago."

"Oh, of course he did!" Aro said quite loudly. "He was always a sly creature."

I stayed silent.

But Aro didn't leave.

Instead, he took a few steps into my room, peering at the novel on the floor. He didn't appear to notice my uneasiness. "I hope you will excuse my ill manner for not complimenting your immortality appearance. It seems we never got to speak with other eye to eye in many years. I must say, immortality definitely brings out the beauty in your face."

"Thanks so much," I said politely.

"May I ask what you are reading?"

"Oh…um, it's this book by Jane Austen. A romance."

"Romance has always my favorite type of literature," Aro said proudly. "As well as books that show many interesting illustrations of cakes."

I stared at him in shock. Was he kidding? Aro liked cookbooks?

"Speaking of romance," Aro continued. "I hear you are soon to be married?"

Despite my irritated mood, I was glad I could find a smile as I nodded. "Yeah, me and Edward wanted to marry soon."

"I see," Aro pondered. "And these exquisite jewelry, they are all from him?"

I nodded.

Aro nodded back once, his eyes calculating something. "Edward is a dear boy. You must love each other very much."

"Y-Yes," I said uneasily. "With all our hearts."

Aro suddenly looked me full in the eye, something I was not prepared for. His red eyes searched mine as if they were trying to find some sort of mistake or clue. What was he trying to do to me? Quickly, I lowered my gaze and tried to focus on my shoes. I just wanted him to leave.

"Well, I suppose I have bothered you more than necessary, dear Bella. I apologize. Shall I escort you to the meeting?"

"Um, well, actually I'm not going."

"Good heavens!" Aro's outburst made me jump. "Why ever not?"

"The Cullens prefer me to stay out it," I explained.

"They exclude you?"

"Well, not in the mean way you think," I defended my family politely. "They're just doing it to protect me. They don't want me to worry or anything, something I can respect."

"But surely they know you can take care of yourself?" Aro pressed lightly.

I huffed. Why was he bothering me so much? "They actually offered me to come along with them in this," I lied. "But I declined, because personally, I don't think I'll be any help to this matter. And they know that too. So it makes it easier for all of us."

Aro pondered my words before nodding. "Interesting. Interesting, indeed. Forgive me for accusing your dear Cullens. I'm sure you are telling me truthfully about your treatment in these meetings."

I pretended to play along and laugh, to cover up my tracks. "Yeah…" was all I said. I dear hoped I wasn't that bad of a liar.

"It was a shame you had to leave us all those years ago," Aro changed the subject, his eyes staring deeply into my own. "We all never expected you to leave so soon."

"Yeah…neither did I," I shuddered, remembering how Edward described how Caius had struck me and almost killed me. Such bad memories.

"You promised us a visit back," Aro said casually, earning my full attention. I did? That didn't seem like something I'd do. Or say, for this matter. Knowing me, I probably only said that to be polite or something.

"Well, after you guys attacked me, I was kind of scared of coming back," I laughed honestly. Usually, Aro would laugh along, the scary hyena he was. But instead, his eyes narrowed, and he looked at me dead seriously.

"We attacked you?" his head cocked slightly to the side.

Was he serious? "You know, when-"

"Aro?"

Both the Volturi Lord and I whirled around to see Carlisle in the doorway. His kind face displayed confusion and a bit of suspicion. "There you are, I was beginning to wonder why the old, powerful Aro was actually not on time."

"So it would seem, Carlisle," Aro answered, and then told me goodbye as he followed Carlisle out the door and back downstairs. I stared after the spot he stood in wonder. Aro remembered when they watched over me but he didn't remember Caius's attack? That didn't seem right…

Slowly, I picked up my book and resumed reading once more.

* * *

**CAIUS**

"But Master, you aren't like the others," I listened to Rosalyn speak in Marcus's personally room in the cabin. "I am here to serve you, I will never disappoint you. I will always be here for you. No one else can do what I can do for you, master."

"Child, you are confused," Marcus told her back. "You are not ready to become a leader of the Volturi, nor am I ready to find myself a new wife."

"But, master-"

"Rosalyn, you must return to your duties. Immediately."

The door to Marcus's quarters opened to where a disappointed new member of the Volturi stalked out. Her flawless face showed pain yet she still had that annoying happy aura on her. It sickened me.

Unfortunately, I was unable to hide myself in time. "Master," she bowed all the way to the floor, all disappointment in her face vanishing. Before she could say anything else revolting, I entered Marcus's quarters and roughly closed the doors behind me.

Marcus was sitting in the wooden chair he had spent most of his time here in, a hand burying his face as a large sigh escaped him.

"Just wanted to remind you of the meeting in two minutes," I told him blankly.

"What will we do with that child?" Marcus groaned, completely ignoring what I previously said. "This is the fourth time she has come up to me."

"Yes, you must have it worse than I."

"Why must Aro torture us this way? Why must he add such gruesome beings to the Volturi? I have had patience with the child, but currently, if it were up to me, she would no longer exist in this world."

"You will never know how much I agree with you."

I had to admit, Marcus did have it worse than me when it came to Rosalyn. Obviously, the witch had been playing between the two of us, wanting to get one of us to snap for her. It was never in billions of years going to be me, and that was clear to her. But Marcus had treated her with respect as much as he could, lifting her spirits about his supposedly interest in her. Poor Marcus, was all I had to say about that.

"Aro?" Marcus peered around me.

As my own eyes took in his sudden appearance, he merely smiled. "My Brothers, you were supposed to be at the meeting fifteen minutes ago on the dot."

"Forgive us, Aro," Marcus said politely. "We were rather occupied."

Aro looked to me for my excuse.

"Whatever," I scoffed.

Aro then laughed heartily, and Marcus even cracked a smile. "My, Brother! How you never fail to disappoint me on your language! It is as if you inherited young Bella's way of speaking."

"I did," I pointed out annoyingly.

"Of course you did," Aro agreed. "Tell me, Caius. Did we ever attack her during her visit?"

How many painful times have I thought about her stay with us fifteen years ago? Too many, I would say. But I remembered perfectly that none of us, not even I, ever physically attacked her. If anyone else ever did… the thought made my hands curl into fists.

"Of course not," I said viciously.

"I see," Aro merely said before he headed out the doorway. "That is not what Bella thought, apparently."

"Wait," I called after him. "What?"

* * *

**Yes, yes, I have been gone for sooo long, I know. Three months or something. Anyway, I'm terribly sorry for the wait, you guys don't deserve that DX I hope I've won you back with the new chapter XDD And yeah, my excuses for not updating sooner: Schoolwork, homework, school soccer, schoolwork, I got a bf 3, and schoolwork. Did I mention schoolwork? Anyway, review! ^^**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**CAIUS**

Aro hadn't given me any details whatsoever about what Bella had told him about attacking us, but it mattered not. All I felt in my path was white rage and a very vicious urge to shred something to pieces.

Something like Edward Cullen.

I found the bastard of a boy just outside the front of his house, looking between two papers on the porch. When he finally heard me approach, he looked up casually, and neatly set the papers beside him. And much to my utter annoyance, he grew an arrogant smirk.

"Lord Caius," he said curtly.

"Cullen," I spat. Oh God how I wanted him in pain.

"What brings you down to the main house?" Cullen asked as if he were speaking to a small child. "I'm afraid Carlisle and Esme have gone to Port Angeles to pick up more newspapers. The rest have gone hunting."  
I scowled at him.

"Including Bella," he added with a grin.

"You bastard," I seethed, my knuckles turning whiter than my pale.

Cullen's eyebrows raised, but he didn't remove his smile. "What?"

"Two hours ago from this very second," I started menacingly. "I was told by Aro that he had a small conversation with Bella. And he also told me you told her that we _attacked _her?"

"Ah, yes," he said. "I remember telling her that. It's so nice to have her believe me so easily."

"Why?" I demanded. "You know what? Never mind. I know why. I know _exactly _why. Because _you _were the one that paid Chelsea to erase Bella's memories."  
"Yes, I was definitely part of that arrangement," Cullen sneered. "But of course, I would've thought you already figured that out, the big, powerful Volturi Lord you are."

My senses boiling in anger- I sprung at the Cullen boy full speed, catching him off guard. I slammed his head against the house, holding him fiercely by the neck as I told him in a shaky, dangerous whisper. "I will kill you… oh yes, I will kill you. I'll _KILL YOU_!"

Cullen continued smiling. "I figured you'd say something like that when I told you the truth."

My grip pulled Cullen's head off the wall and slammed it back on, causing his face to develop a small crack on his cheek. Still, he did not break his arrogant, irritating smirk.

"You don't know how much danger you're in, boy."  
"I've never doubted your strength. I'm sure I would be dead by your hand by the time Carlisle returns. But you aren't going to kill me. You never will, no matter how many chances like this you get."

HOW DARE THAT- "You dare-"

"Bella," Edward said simply under my tightening grip. "As long as Bella lives, and is hidden from the truth, you will not kill me. I'm her entire world, Caius. I'm her life. I'm her _love_."

I could hear my own shaky breaths.

"And with me dead, it will _destroy_ her," he sneered. "And they all will turn to you for my murder. And Bella won't only fear you. She'll hate you. Well, more than she hates you now."  
"She does _not_ hate me," I declared. "She loves me as I love her."

"Of course," Edward grinned sarcastically. "You can so tell by the way she has been avoiding you the whole time you and the rest of them have been here."

My grip on his throat tightened more. I leaned close to him. "I always knew you were a fool. A coward. The day you walked into Volterra and demanded of Aro to murder you, there was something wrong about you. I knew from that moment- that you would die. I would kill you. And now, I look at you now. You smirk at me as if you know you've won something. But all I hold now is a bloody coward who had the nerve- who was sick enough to brainwash the girl he loves just so she won't be with a man she wants to be with."

"Technically, Chelsea brainwashed her, not me," Cullen pointed out.

"SHUT UP!" I screeched. "You bastard- you don't deserve her. Bella doesn't deserve a man who lies behind her back and keeps her locked away from the world."

"You don't deserve her any more than I do, then," Cullen's smirk finally vanished into rage. "I'm not the one who wanted to rip her throat out because she knew of the vampire species."

"I'm not the same man I was before, and you know that perfectly well," I snarled. "Bella loved me. We would've been happy together."

"Hell no you wouldn't have been!" Cullen growled back. "I treat her right- she belongs with me! She won't have to worry about me losing my temper with her and attacking her."

"I _never _attacked her!" I screamed. "Nor will I ever! The only time that's happened is in that damn fantasy in your sick mind, boy!"  
"I'm the one who she belongs with!" Cullen replied. "I'm the one she saw on her first day of high school. I'm the one who has protected her and most importantly- the one who she fell in love with. And I won't let her make another one of her stupid mistakes by telling me she actually prefers you to me- me, her _idol_."

"Some idol you are," I snapped. "You selfish, lying bastard. You never cared what she wanted. You never cared about who she was happy with. What was the only thing that you thought about? Yes, you know the answer to that one. You only cared about yourself and losing her- you were so _afraid_, that you had the nerve to brainwash her just so she'd stay with you."

Cullen smirked once more. "Doesn't matter how many insults you give me. Because the past is behind. Right now- Bella loves me. And I've given her all the jewelry she can dream of, and all the affection she could want. She will never, ever return to you. Doesn't matter if I lied to her, I did it to protect us, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. You can never give her what I can."

Now it was my turn to smirk. "You're wrong. You'll never know how to love Bella properly. You don't know her like I do. She doesn't need jewelry and this so called affection to win her over."

"What are you trying to prove, Caius?" Cullen finally asked. "Say you do know her better than I do. So what? Still won't drive her back into your arms. She's already in love with me. You're too late. In a few weeks, we will be married. And you will return back to Italy."  
"I'm in love with Bella. And I probably always will be. If she wants to be with you, then you're right, I really can't stop it. Because unlike you, I care for her feelings. I'm not going to get Chelsea and pay her to erase memories of you like a coward."  
"You damn-"

"But I am going to do this. I am going to make sure Bella knows the truth before I leave this town. Because she deserves the truth. Fifteen years of lies is enough. She will know what you've done. She will know the lies you have repeatedly used. Then, we'll see if she still wants to be with you. Good day to you, boy."

Then I released my grip on his throat, and turned to head back to the cabin. The satisfying sound of his drop filled my ears.

**I was just really into writing today so yes, I posted two chapter in one day XD Enjoy and YEAH! GO CAIUS!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**

* * *

**

**BELLA**

"That deer was utterly disgusting," Rosalie muttered as the four of us were heading back to the house. Alice and Jasper had ditched us to go on some random walk, and we all agreed that the animal's blood seemed disgusting for some reason.

"C'mon, honey," Emmett said, grinning. "You can't expect to have a guy as great as me and not suffer every once in a while."

"You are such a bastard," Rosalie snarled at him, but they both kissed anyway. Bree and I quickly looked the other way, a bit disturbed.

It had been a strange day so far. Everybody was in weird moods. Edward didn't want to accompany us to go hunting, and Carlisle and Esme had been avoiding us as well. Perhaps the suspicion or something about the attackers was eating them from the inside.

Edward was sitting on the porch where I last left him, holding some design papers but strangely touching his cheek. He finally realized me approached when I was less than two feet away from him. "Bella!" he said rather surprised, and he jumped up from his spot to give me a large embrace. "How was your hunting trip?"

"It was okay, I guess," I shrugged, and hugged him back. When we finally broke apart, I asked. "Are Carlisle and Esme back?"

"Yeah, they got here like an hour ago," Edward explained. "They're in the middle of a meeting with the Volturi leaders. I'd take the back door if you were planning on going upstairs."

"Okay, thanks," I smiled and kissed him lightly on the cheek before heading towards the backyard.

"Oh yeah, and Bella," Edward called. Once I turned, he smiled warmly. "I love you."

A frown consumed my face. What the hell? "I…love you too, Edward. As always."

When Edward finally walked off, I was left staring at the spot he had been standing. What was the point of that? We were seeing each other again, weren't we…? Confused, I continued towards the back door and headed up to my room to read the rest of that romance novel.

After about two hours, I finally finished the book. It was a good ending, I suppose. But now I was bored to death.

With the library closed today, I wandered into the kitchen to look through some of Esme's cookbooks. They always interested me. Especially since I no longer had to cook anymore, unless with a special occasion when I was with Charlie. I scanned through a couple soup ones, and then tossed them on the table where I could read through them better.

As I read instructions, a chair to the left creaked and caught my attention. Automatically, my head snapped up. Lord Caius, set his notebook and equipment on the chair farthest away from mine. But it was still at the same table, and that made me a bit uneasy.

When he saw me, he gave me a polite smile. "Hello."

"Hi…" I said, frowning. Why did we always meet at the most random of times? He didn't speak to me again, but merely took out a pencil and began writing. I felt stupid for staring, but I couldn't help my damn curiosity. "You use pencils?"

Caius looked up at me, slightly confused. "Yes."

"I always thought you guys- the Volturi- used those feathery things…"

"Quills?" he asked, smirking.

"Yeah- that's what I meant."

"Yes, we normally do use quills. But over the past couple years I have learned that it is much easier to utilize a pencil rather than a quill, with the addition of ink."

"Have you ever, like, accidentally forgot that you didn't need to use ink for a pencil but you dipped the pencil in ink anyway?" the words just flooded from my mouth.

"Don't remind me," Caius shook his head. "I have lost count how many times that had happened over the first few months. It was very humiliating. You would have laughed at me."

"I doubt that," I responded. "Even as the stupid teenager I was, I don't think I'd be able to have the guts to laugh at a Volturi leader."

"You'd be surprised by the way you acted towards me, then," Caius told me with a sly grin. He then returned to his writing, leaving me wondering how I really was like at my time with the Volturi. I wanted to ask more questions but I forced myself to shut up.

"So are you writing to someone?" I asked. Ugh- bad Bella! Bad Bella! He's going to dislocate you for annoying him!

"Not in this case, actually," he told me softly, not sounding annoyed by my questions at all. "But I am known to write many letters. Whenever Aro or Marcus needs to contact someone, I write the letter."

"You guys don't use cell phones?"

"You mean those tiny, annoying box things? No way."

"Okay then," I said. "But I saw Aro was playing on one the other day."

"There are multiple things that fascinate Aro," Caius sighed. "He is like a child when it comes to looking at new things. No doubt he would have been all over Carlisle's phone. Even that cookbook that you possess now would have greatly interested him. You wouldn't get it back until the end of the century."

"Century?" my eyebrows raised.

"Lets just say he likes re-looking at the pictures," Caius said. "A lot."

"Oh," I held back my snicker. "Well, anyway, if you aren't writing to someone, what are you writing?"

Caius picked up his head. "A story."

My mind whirled? Caius liked to write stories? Since when? How much did I not know exactly? "You're an author?"

"Not really," he muttered. "I just started it, and I'm not sure I really want to publish it. But it does help clear my mind when I am frustrated."

"What's the name of it?" I pressed.

He stared into my eyes, another warm smile coming up. "I call it, 'Stuck in Volterra.'"

* * *

**Hey! No copyright, Caius! Lol anyway so sorry for the short and rather boring chapter but it needs to be there XD Hope I get reviews from you guys and I will update 'Stuck with Her' very shortly ;) Review ^^**


	14. Chapter 14

**HEY GUYS! I know you guys are probably not happy with me right now for basically deserting you for like three months ( WHICH I DEEPLY APOLOGIZE FOR) but I did manage to get you guys a new chapter :) I'm pretty sure that I'll be sticking with you ppl all summer ;)**

**Also, I know that the switching POVS can get kind of annoying, so I'm gonna try to keep one POV for each chapter. Anyway- ENJOY!**

**~Onwind**

* * *

**Chapter 14**

**BELLA**

Overhead, the mountains swallowed up the last bits of sun and brilliant orange, and a smoggy dark blue began to take its turn. Normally, days before a wedding would have your heart pounding all day from excitement and the days would drag on and on because you couldn't get the damn celebration off your mind. Not for me, apparently.

In fact, I really had no idea what day it was. I hadn't looked at a calendar in years. Or so it felt liked. Boredom clogged me to the bone over the last couple days. And it _sucked_.

Edward had been getting on my nerves, too. At random times, he would embrace me fiercely, or even kiss my forehead, telling me how beautiful I was or how much I meant to him. Perhaps he was getting nervous about the wedding, was what I thought at first. However, my thoughts quickly had risen to deep suspicion on this new game of his. And he seemed to enjoy playing it whenever we were near the Volturi.

And to even make everything more confusing, Edward had bailed out of all the meetings today to spend all day in my room. It used to never feel awkward when I was around him, free to just spill my feelings and for him to understand. But today I was on the edge. This didn't feel right. He was just doing his thing, looking through my CDs on the shelf and plugging some in to listen to, while I continued glancing at him from reading. Part of me yearned to demand why he was still here, but I held that thought on a leash. I didn't want to be rude. Especially to my fiancé. But damn it, why was he here?

"Um, Edward?" I finally spoke up. He snapped his gaze to me a little too quickly, his calm face replaced by a giant smile.

"Yes, love?" he asked warmly.

"Uh…you know, you can take those CDs if you want, you don't have to keep listening to them in here," I explained.

Edward chuckled. "What, I can't listen to music and be with my beautiful fiancé at the same time?"

'Nope,' I actually almost blurted out. Instead, I forced my best smile and resumed going to my book. Edward stayed for the rest of the day, occupied in my CDs without a word.

I felt trapped with him there, though. Like I couldn't even lay down on my couch or listen to my own specific kind of music. I debated with the idea to just leave, but I didn't want to leave him alone, either. Mentally, I groaned.

He _finally _left when it was around night time and the entire sky was darkened with stars in view. After he had gone, I took that at the 'okay' signal to finally leave my room, and I wandered into the living room to try and find Bree.

The living room was completely deserted. A haystack could've rolled in and it would've made perfect sense. Perhaps Bree and the rest of them had all gone hunting or had gone to a meeting with the Volturi.

I then realized that someone else must've bailed on the meetings today.

Caius was still sitting in the same spot on the kitchen table, deeply occupied in his writing. From the looks of it, he hadn't bothered to notice me. He must've been on a roll with that story of his, that mysterious story that I felt tempted to steal and read in a corner alone.

Before he could notice me, I ducked behind the couch, listening intently to the quick writing the pencil made. Stupid Bella, I thought. What the hell are you doing? He already knows your there, idiot. You're not exactly the quietest person in the world.

Still, I remained the vulnerable spot behind the couch. And the weird part was, I realized, that it wasn't because I was scared of him.

I mean, what really was to fear of him? He hadn't done anything vicious this whole time the Volturi had been here. He had been _nice_. And _polite_. The two things I was not expecting at all.

It's a trap, Edward would say. He's just trying to play innocent.

I sneered at what Edward would say. And I didn't know why I did, either. He probably was right; Caius was dangerous. I should have known that from my last experience. Even if I couldn't remember it very well.

Cautiously, I peered over from behind the couch to see if he was writing. He was. Still deeply engrossed in his story.

Alright, this is so idiotic, I decided. Here I am watching him while he writes, like a complete stalker, and trying to hide from him behind a couch. Little kids should do this. Not me.

Still, I didn't want to just pop up and totally let him know I had been spying on him. Cautiously, I slid my foot as far as I could reach and dragged myself quietly against the dark cherry floors, heading to the hallway. So far so good. I then took another cautious step.

_Creak!_

Damn it!

I quickly went still, mentally cursing the stupid creaky floor. What the hell? I was getting so confident I was going to make it without him noticing, and _now_, ugh…now I'm screwed.

Strangely, I didn't hear any noises coming from his direction. Did he seriously not hear me? Or perhaps he had but he was too busy writing to get up and check? Or he might have just not heard me at all. Even though I had to say it was pretty obvious…

I stupidly decided to test my luck by taking another step.

Bad mistake.

The floor creaked even _louder_! Oh my God! He surely hadn't been able to miss that one; someone could've probably heard that in the next city! As I was quietly cursing myself, I heard someone chuckle.

My eyes shot in his direction, automatically. It definitely was coming from him, yet he didn't turn around. He kept his face forward to the other side of the table, his back still turned to me. I felt myself starting to smile. Yes, he definitely heard me. He was probably laughing at my idiotic attempt to sneak past him. And he was right. I had no chance.

Taking that as a signal that my cover was over, I simply stood up and walked out the room. We didn't need to say anything directly to understand there were no hard feelings. Still, I felt like a complete idiot as I hurried down the hallway.

To my surprise, I totally shouldered someone without even noticing. I quickly whirled around, "Oh my God, I'm so-"

My eyes met a pair of round red ones. She must have been part of the Volturi, mainly because of her eye color and the royal robes. But she looked so innocent and surprised, an expression I never knew the Volturi could possess.

She stared at me confused, and then longingly, her beautifully shaped eyes tinted down in sadness. My body started to tear away from the strange vampress's gaze, but she took a step closer, like she was trying to get a better look at me.

Her eyes searched my face like she was reading something, even though it made no sense whatsoever. Finally, the Volturi guard's face changed, and it slowly crumpled, as if she would cry if she did.

"No, Bella…" the vampress choked out. Her voice would've been beautiful if it hadn't been made her tone so saddened. She then whispered. "_I'm_ so sorry…"

And then she hurried away, and was gone before I could get a chance to ask what her deal was. Questions ran through my mind wildly. I felt bad for her, but…what exactly was she sorry for? She didn't do anything wrong.

Shrugging it off, I ventured upstairs to continue searching for Bree.

* * *

**Yeah, before you guys ask, I will say that the sad Volturi guard was Chelsea, and you guys can probably guess why she's so ashamed of herself. Anyway, summer break's almost here so I probably will never keep you guys waiting that long again ^^ Reviews would be awesome and make me update faster!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

* * *

**BELLA**

I was about halfway through the dishes when I heard a car pull in the front of the house, the car lights reflecting into the windows. I had decided to visit to Charlie as a surprise, only to realize he was gone. Still, I had a key, and there was an enormous stack of unwashed plates in the sink, giving me something to do.

When he walked in, I was surprised to see him in his old police uniform, the gold badge still tightly in place. He didn't look as shocked as I expected when he saw me in the kitchen. "Bells. Didn't know you were coming."

"Supposed to be a surprise," I shrugged with a smile, only to be disappointed he didn't return it. "Its cool if I hang out here for a while, right?"

"Of course," Charlie said, heading around the counter. "You didn't have to do that. I was going to wash them."

"Dad, its okay," I assured. "I haven't done dishes in a while, so its kind of refreshing."

"Eh, well, give me something to do," he muttered, searching through the cabinets for a pan. "Anything to get this stuff off of my mind."

I slowly dried my hands, and turned to face him. "What do you mean? And… why are you in your uniform? I thought you were on a two month break."

"Yeah, well, times like these, you need all the help you can get," he sighed, spraying the pan. "You've heard about these massive deaths happening in Idaho, haven't you?"

"I did hear about that," I said casually.

"Well, now its in Pullman."

I nearly dropped the dish I was washing. "_Pullman_? That's just on the other side of the state!"

"Uh huh," he said. "And by the fast rate these maniacs are going, they could get here by a week's time. Every officer we've sent hasn't come back. It's completely out of control. And if we can't stop it soon- the military will probably sent some troops over."

"Dad…_you're_ not going to go over there…are you?"

There was a long silence.

Finally, he sighed again. "I don't know. If we keep running out of officers then it could happen. But hopefully these _animals_ will be stopped before that happens."

"Dad-you _can't_ go!"

"Bella-"

"You'll be killed! For sure-"

"Bella, calm down," he said loudly. "I am not guaranteeing anything. Nothing is for sure yet. But you have to remember, no matter what happens, I had pledged my life to saving others. Its part of the job. And remember, this is only if things become absolutely necessary. For now, I've been told with the others to help evacuate the cities."

I looked at him, shocked. "Evacuate? _Everyone_?"

"These maniacs have hit six places already, Bella," he explained. "Almost a thousand are dead. And its getting pretty obvious we might be another target. Its too risky now, people lives are at stake. Cities next to us are evacuating as well. And I'm glad you're here for me to tell you this… I would feel better if you moved to Jacksonville with your mother until its safe."

"But…dad," I uttered. "I'm getting married soon. And Edward's family- I can't leave them!"

"Bella, I'm not asking you to leave them," he reasoned. "Take them with you, if you can. But you're safety matters most to me. I would feel better if you could leave as soon as possible, and get out of here before they have a chance of coming here."

Slowly, I nodded. "I'll see what I can do, I guess. And I'll talk to Edward about it when I get back there."

"Alright," he started piling frozen chicken onto the pan. "And you'll have your cell phone? You'll call me if anything happens?"

"Of course," I answered, finishing the last dish. "I think I'm going to head back. Just to…you know…tell them everything. I'm sure they'll completely agree with you."

Charlie nodded. "Yeah. That. Yes, do that. I want you to tell me their response as soon as you can, alright? If I don't hear from you in the next two days…I might have to come over there."

"No, dad- don't do that," I started backing towards the doorway. "Just- keep your phone on. I'll text back as soon as I can. Promise."

My words seemed to satisfy him. He mixed the chicken around awkwardly. "Alright. Well, you sure you don't want to stay for dinner? It'll just take me another fifteen minutes. And I actually do a good job with this stuff."

"I'm sure you do, dad," I pretended to smile. "But really, I actually already ate before I came."

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered. "Excuses, excuses. Get going, then."

"Okay," I rested my hand on the door handle. Somehow, I couldn't get myself to leave. What if this was the last time I saw him? What if he had to leave and go fight in Pullman and I didn't have a chance to say goodbye?

No, that was stupid. I'd see him again. I just needed to tell Carlisle as fast as possible.

Very slowly, I turned back around. "Be careful."

He looked up at me. "Always am."

I fidgeted.

"Um…do you want me to tell Edward you said hi?"

"Nope."

"Okay then. Bye, dad."

"Bye, Bells."

The moment the door closed fully behind me, I took off.

* * *

Dread greeted me when I pulled up in front of the Cullen's house. I couldn't detect any trace of Carlisle's scent. Or Edward's. Or any of the Cullens scents.

This was bad.

I frantically pushed through the doors, the stress already building on me. Please don't let this be true. I needed them here. I needed to tell them everything before something would happen to Charlie…

"Carlisle!" I screeched, running up the stairs. "Carlisle! Edward!"

No answer.

And still no scent.

"No, no, no…" I chanted, hurrying down the stairs again. "Please don't let this be happening…not now…please-"

"Bella?"

I nearly jumped.

The blonde Volturi leader looked at me questioningly, have hidden behind the wall that led into the kitchen. He didn't look annoyed, but he did look suspicious. I quickly tried to compose myself.

"Um…uh- nothing. Nothing," I said quickly. "Is Carlisle here?"

"I believe he left about an hour ago," Caius answered, stepping towards me cautiously. "He should be back soon. Is there something wrong?"

"No…no….it's just," I stressfully rested my hand on my forehead. "It's just my dad. He's a police officer, and if we don't hurry up with a plan against the attackers, he might have to go after them. And its obvious he won't be able to survive against them- because no one else has- and they're bloody vampires- they'll rip him to _shreds_- and oh God I'm going insane-"

"Bella," he repeated.

I stared up at him, a wild expression still planted on my face. Slowly, he stepped forward. And then he did it again. And again. Until we were a mere three feet apart.

I searched his face for some kind of negativity. Some kind of sign that he thought I was crazy or stupid or utterly insane. But I could find nothing. Just a very deep concern, with a tone of warmness. His expression made me relax, my frantic thoughts of Charlie slowly slipping from my mind. I didn't know what was happening. Only that I was completely entranced. His expression was beautiful.

And _he_ was beautiful.

Slender fingertips barely grazed my cheek.

Like a switch, I automatically backed away several feet, my eyes fastening to the wooden floor. Caius had also stepped back at a large distance, resting his arms heavily on the staircase pole. "I'm sorry," he barely murmured, looking very ashamed of himself.

I didn't have time to think about what just happened, because Carlisle had suddenly burst through the door, heading swiftly in my direction. "Bella, Alice told me you needed to talk to me about Charlie. I came as quickly as I could. What's happened?"

But I couldn't say anything. My eyes were still on Caius.

Carlisle followed my gaze and frowned. "Caius, are you quite alright? Need me to get Aro?"

The blonde Volturi leader shook his head. "I'm sorry," he repeated, before disappearing into the hallway. Carlisle got my attention by demanding me what was wrong. I got myself to tell him everything he needed to know. The rest of the Cullens were on their way home. But my eyes never left the hallway entrance, where _he_ had hurried into and never came back out.

* * *

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	16. Chapter 16

**Muahaha, you guys are gonna hate me at the end of this chapter XDD Meet ya at the bottom!**

**Chapter 16**

* * *

**BELLA**

"_And it was confirmed just last night that the authorities will be requiring everyone in Forks to be evacuating in case of_-"

The T.V screen went black the second Carlisle raised the remote in it's direction. He sighed heavily. "We should have been more prepared for this. We knew they were coming this way, and we didn't make a plan. Emmett, would you please get Aro? We need to figure out what we're going to do by then end of today."

Edward and I both watched as Emmett hauled himself up and disappeared down the hallway. Worrying was the only thing I had been doing lately. Carlisle's words were right, there was very little time left. Very little time to think of how to face these attackers, and very little time before the other cops would need Charlie to go out to battle with them.

We needed a _good_ plan.

Aro followed Emmett back into the living room. For once, Aro didn't seem to have a cheerful expression. "Good lord, Carlisle. Have you too heard the word? I'm glad you called me in. Something needs to be done before they attack this poor little rain town."

"Bella's father might have to leave town to fight them, as well," Carlisle added, glancing towards me. "It is very clear that no mere human could stand a chance against these creatures. Hopefully, we can quickly agree on a time and date we're going to go at war with them."

"Of course," Aro agreed, his fingertips slowly pressing against the others. When no one seemed to speak up, he started again. "I propose…we leave in exactly four days. In that time, we will have become fully prepared, and the majority of the town will have evacuated safely."

"That's too long a wait," Jasper spoke up. "Each day, they're taking lives. We all need to leave as soon as possible. I say, even though it might sound bizarre, that we leave tomorrow. We prepare tonight, and be ready to fight the next day."

"Jasper, we don't even know their location," Carlisle interrupted.

"Yeah, Jasper," Emmett sneered. "_God_."

The honey blonde vampire ignored his brother. "If we don't know their location now, what makes you think we'll know it later on? That's just wasting time! We have the right powers- we can figure out where they are."

"It's still too soon," Carlisle sighed. "We can't just rush into this. As much as I want to prevent any more deaths, none of us are the least bit prepared. This battle will be unlike any other. We've easily taken down groups of newborns before, but we don't even know what these creatures are. They could be newborns. They probably are. But what if we were wrong?"

"Their unusually monstrous type is not essential," Aro stepped in, using more big words. "Our attack should be well focused on. However, before we search further into that matter, does everyone agree to the departure in four days?"

Nobody moved or said anything. I flirted with the idea with speaking up, because truthfully, I thought that was too long a wait. Anytime in those four long days, they could call up Charlie. And he would never come back.

Carlisle's eyes landed on mine. "Bella. You look like you have something to say."

"I don't," I spoke back. Everyone else seemed to be okay with this deadline. I mind as well just go with the flow.

"Please, say something," he pressed. "Its your father's life. You have a right to speak up."

I shrugged helplessly. "Well…I think Jasper's right. There's not that much more we need to prepare for… and more people are dying. A lot could happen in four days. Any one of those days, Charlie could be sent out. I just… I don't know. I think we need to leave sooner than that. I say two days."

The Cullens eyed each other with pondering looks. Thankfully, none of their expressions totally crushed my idea. Not yet, anyway.

Aro nodded once. "Carlisle, I do not have a problem with this suggestion."

"Two days," Carlisle thought this over. "Alright. I believe we've reached an agreement, then. Aro, could you please gather up Marcus and Caius? We should all do some more research on their whereabouts. The rest of you need to fuel up for the battle date."

Everyone in the living room started to scurry out of the doorways, blank looks on their faces. Edward headed in my direction. "Think I'm going to go with Jasper and Emmett before sunrise. Hunting sounds pretty good right now."

"Yeah, well, I mind as well come with you guys," I shrugged. "This is my first battle, so I want to be as prepared as the rest of you."

Edward paused. "Er…Bella. None of us were planning to have you actually fight. The same goes for Bree."

"What?" I uttered. "But…I'm one of you guys now. I have a shield power- I can help you guys!"

"This is going to be a huge fight, Bella," Edward explained. "The rest of us have fighting experience. It's too dangerous."

"I _know_ it's too dangerous!" I said. "That's why we had to ask the freaking Volturi for help in the first place! You guys will need all the help you can get, and I'm willing to help!"

"Yes, love, I know," he reasoned. "But I couldn't stand it if you got hurt. This just isn't the fight for you."

"To hell with that!" I yelled in disbelief. "This is more my fight than any of yours. My dad's life is on the line, and I'm going to do everything I can to protect him. He'd do the same for me. Edward, you have to let me be in the family for once. It's been over ten years. And not once in that time have you ever let me do something to help- when I can! I'm surprised you even let me hunt on my own!"

Edward sighed, his eyes closing softly. "Alright, Bella. I'm sorry. I just couldn't stand it if something took you away from me. You know that's what I'm like. I get protective."

I nodded a few times, understandingly.

"Stay out of the fight," he started. "But if you must fight, then do it. Protect Charlie. And remember to be _super_ careful."

"Hey, I'm all for that, Mr. Miyagi," I smiled at him. "Thank you. Really."

He hugged me gently, kissing my forehead while he did so. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too."

* * *

My tires screeched to a stop once I got in front of Charlie's driveway. It was raining again, much to my annoyance. Just my luck, it starts raining the second I get out of my truck.

Charlie's car sat in front of mine, like he'd been at the house all day. I wasn't expecting him to be home at all. Perhaps he was on break from helping the rest of the people in Forks evacuate.

When I got to the front door, he already was outside, holding it open for me. He looked stressed in his police uniform. "I was hoping you'd come by before I would have to leave again."

"Working all day, huh?"

"Pretty much," Charlie sighed. "They let me come home for an hour to eat lunch and pack up my own things. A friend in Denver is letting me stay there with him unless this whole thing clears up. Eh, well, that is if I don't get sent over to war."

"You aren't going to, right?" I asked cautiously. "There's a good chance they won't let you?"

He shrugged. "Don't know, they aren't keeping me or anybody else updated. I suspect they won't, since they're letting me pack up. You should probably go through your stuff upstairs. See if you want anything in case we can't come back."

I nodded stiffly. I never really lived here that long, but I seriously hoped it wouldn't come to 'no returning.' And that was just me- it must be ten times harder for Charlie. "Um… I talked with the rest of the Cullens about where we're supposed to go. We're going to leave in two days, and we're staying at some place in…North Carolina. Carlisle said he'd talk to you if you had any questions."

Charlie thought this over. "Hm. North Carolina. That's a bit of a ways away. But it's a good distance. Tell Carlisle to phone me up. And call your mom. She called the house a few days ago."

"Oh no," I groaned.

"Yep," he huffed. "She's freaking out. I'd call her before she gets a plane and shows up on my doorstep."

"True that, dad," I muttered. "Can I use your home phone?"

"Go ahead."

My eyes examined the house for the phone. I hated it when he just left it wherever. "Dad, where's the phone? Again?"

"Oh, yeah- in the kitchen."

Automatically, I made my way around the counter, the phone sitting awkwardly next to sink. I dialed in my mother's number, but my finger rested on the call button. There was something I recognized on the other side of the counter.

Very slowly, I put the phone back in its position.

"Hey, dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you still have this?" I held up the locket necklace I had found on his lawn, months ago. There was less dirt on it, and it seemed like someone had tried to wash it out. A beautiful necklace, for sure. Even with all the brown spots on it. My thumb ran over the pearls.

Charlie looked up to see what I was talking about. "Oh, yeah. You put that in the recycle bin. Found it this morning when I was taking the recyclables out. You really got to remember the trash can is on the left, for the millionth time."

"Why didn't you just throw it away again?" I weakly scratched on a spot clogging between the chain.

"Eh, I don't know," Charlie strolled past me, throwing a can of soda in the _left _bin. "Just wanted to make sure it wasn't yours. You know how your mother can get when she loses her jewelry. And…well, it looks expensive. It looks too valuable to just toss out."

"It's not mine," I said, examining it. "Maybe Edward bought it for me once… and I don't remember it?"

"Sure," Charlie muttered. "Whatever. You should take it with you. I don't have enough room in my own jewelry box for it."

I laughed. "Like you'd ever allow yourself to be caught dead with a jewelry box."

Charlie smiled weakly, before switching on the T.V.

It really was a beautiful necklace. But it seriously couldn't be mine. The only memory I ever had with it was when I last found it in his lawn.

Scraping off more pieces of mud and dirt, I finally found success when I got to the small knob on the side. Cool. Maybe it would open now.

I put a finger on the knob and began to push it open.

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	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

* * *

**BELLA**

Before I even got the chance to figure out what was going on, a sudden rush slammed into me with great force, the second I heard the weak croak of the locket.

_The room was rather large, ceilings at least forty feet from the ground. It was dirty, too, spider webs and cracked lines in every couple feet. The very tops of the walls were decorated with a very outdated maroon color._

_What struck the most surprise was that Caius was only a few yards away from me, writing something on a wooden desk. His hair was how it used to be, long and blonde. A scowl penetrated his features as he continued to work._

"_You should use some pink ribbons," words had flown out of my mouth._

What?

Was I serious?

"_No," he had answered back, promptly. He looked annoyed for sure, but it didn't seem like he'd jump out and attack me for asking that ridiculous question._

_More insane words flowed out. _"_I bet the people you write to are always so bored of the same old maroon ribbons."_

What the hell was I doing?

_He sighed. "Your concern for their mental suffering of ribbon colors is touching."_

_"I'm just saying," I had shrugged. "You should just change the color up a bit."_

"_Hmph."_

The scene changed.

_We must have been in the middle of a conversation or something, because Caius was looking me straight in the eye, his hair newly cut and his eyes starting to change color. _

"_I don't have the strength to kill-"_

The locket croak stopped, and I blinked several times.

I was back in Charlie's house, Charlie staring at me in suspicion from the couch. I breathed heavily, my mind whirling from the random mind surge that had just taken over me. What the hell…

"Bella?" Charlie asked, eyebrows frowning with concern.

I didn't answer. I just stared back down at the broken locket.

"Bella…" Charlie repeated. "You looked like you've just seen a ghost."

"No, no," I managed to choke out. "I...I just need to….I need to go. Um, yeah. I'll see you later dad, keep me informed on what's happening with the attacks, okay?"

Right when I reached the doorknob, he firmly grabbed my arm. "Now, wait. What's going on? I'm your dad- I'm supposed to help you with stuff."

"No, dad, really," I said a bit harsher than I intended. "I just…forgot something. I forgot to lock the back door in the Cullen's house when I said I would. I really should go."

"Bells, please," he said almost desperately. "C'mon. You just got here. And I want to spend some time with you in case I have to leave and go to Pullman. I'm sure the back door will be fine-"

"Sorry dad," I pulled out of his grasp and shut the door quickly behind me. I could feel his eyes watching me sadly as I hurried down the steps and went to start my car. When the engine started, I glanced up at the doorway to see him slowly closing the door all the way and locking it.

A small part of me felt a pang of sadness and guilt at how I had just acted towards him. I hated hurting him, and he probably didn't know that. He was used to it by now. And he had every reason to want me to stay; he could truly leave any second an officer gave him a call. Unfortunately for his sake, I had a much bigger issue on my hands.

My hands grasped the opened locket tightly as I examined it. Whatever the hell this thing was, there was something _seriously_ spooky about it. It gave me a few memories from Volterra that I never thought I would remember. How was it possible…? My stay at Volterra had been a disgrace, as Edward had told me. I was abused and nearly killed…

This wasn't making sense.

The memory did seem very real, however. Didn't make sense, but it was real. And the locket. If the tune actually worked, would it give me more memories? I needed to know more.

What did Caius mean about not having to the strength to kill something?

Before I could pull the car out of the driveway, another car screech was heard right by mine. Alice ran up the driveway, and she leaned inside my window. "Bella, where's the locket!"

"Um…Alice, how did you-"

"A vision," she explained, golden eyes frantic. "Where is it? I saw you opening it, and I saw you looking like you were in some type of a trance."

"I was," I said. "It was…weird. I suddenly got a memory when I was in Volterra. Isn't that weird? I was going to give it to Carlisle and see if he could fix it…or maybe he could explain it or something…"

"Give it to me," Alice reached out her small pale hand. "I'll tell him about it and get some answers for you."

"Um…Alice, it's fine," I responded cautiously. "I can do it, since I am after all the person who experienced it."

"Trust me, Bella," she insisted. "It's better with me."

I sighed, and put the broken locket in her hand. "Alright…if it really means that much to you. Thanks, Alice."

She merely smiled, and put the locket gently in her pocket. "That's what sisters are for. After we get back, you should come with me and Rosalie hunting. We need all our strength before we battle some monsters."

"You said it," I grinned. "Meet you back at the fort, alright?"

"Yep," she quipped, and then my window was empty.

I stared after her in my rearview mirror with a deep frown.

She tucked the locket in one of the pockets inside her shirt.

* * *

I kept in touch with Charlie for the rest of the day, making sure he didn't get any calls. It was the only way to really take my mind off of the locket and what Alice was really planning to do with it. I did trust her, and I probably always would, but I really wasn't liking the vibe she had with it. It was making me suspicious.

Edward avoided me more than normal as well. Both him and Alice did in fact. She ended up not joining Rosalie and I for the hunting trip, and I never got any word from her of what Carlisle had thought of the locket. That is, if she even asked him.

Then there was _him_. That strange and fascinating Volturi leader that was the highlight in those memories. How comfortable was I during my time there? I was talking to him like he was my best guy friend or a brother. It didn't matter whether he'd killed thousands of humans and was the meanest creature in the world. He was fun to tease, apparently, and that had been enough for me.

He and Aro passed through the house once to gather more belongings before the departure, looking for Carlisle for assistance. Aro greeted me formally, while he merely glanced at me with a strange expression. If I had still had a heart, it would have leapt.

And after that, it was hard to keep my thoughts off of him. I was so confused by these memories and feelings, it was making me dizzy and overwhelmed. Edward would have helped me if he hadn't been avoiding me.

I caught a glance of Edward's back disappearing behind a corner on my way up to my room. When I had hurried after him, the door he was behind was cracked open. Alice was with him. And so was Rosalie.

"-Can't keep this up," I heard Alice's sweet voice say. With the locket now in her palm, she handed it to Edward.

"I agree," he said, taking it.

"You both are insane," Rosalie muttered menacingly. "I can't believe-what are you _doing_?"

Flames in the fireplace had began to crackle and rise. Only then with much horror did I realize that Edward had tossed the locket-_my_ locket- into the fireplace.

"Are you mad!" Rosalie was screaming now.

"No," Edward said firmly. "I'm doing what's best for my family."

Rage engulfed me as I backed away from the door.

* * *

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	18. Chapter 18

**And thus, from all of your guys' beautiful reviews, this chapter was born! Enjoy!**

**Chapter 18**

* * *

**BELLA**

I nearly tripped over myself as I hurried down the stairwell, my thoughts engulfed in utter confusion and horror. What the hell was going on? The closest people to me_ burned_ my only chance at ever knowing what happened in Volterra. Didn't they know something was up with that locket? Didn't they _know_?

_Why? _

My thoughts repeated anxiously through my head as they tried to grab onto any kind of reason.

_Why?_

It made no sense. The only reason they would burn it is if they didn't want me to see what happened during my stay with the Volturi. And I already was told what happened, what would be so bad with remembering all of it? What were they hiding?

My head was so caught up in confusion that I didn't notice falling right into Carlisle's arms. He helped me back up, his eyes narrowed. "Bella…your face. What happened?"

I couldn't look him back in the eyes. I was nearly shaking. "E-Edward… Alice… fireplace…_Edward_…" I tried motioning upstairs to help my stupid inability to put sentences together. "They- I don't…"

"Bella," he gripped me. "Calm down. Tell me what's going on."

"What's happened?" Esme suddenly entered the room, clutching a stack of papers. Her brunette hair flowed together in a neat bun, and her perfect eyebrows knit together.

"I don't know," Carlisle released me. "She's not answering. She looks like she's in shock."

"Bella?" Esme asked me gently, lifting my chin to examine my face. "Dear, you've got to tell us what's wrong so we can help you."

"Fire…" was all I could squeak out. "Alice…Edward…_Edward_…"

Esme automatically stepped back several feet, and distantly called for Alice and Edward. They both eventually responded to her call by heading down the stairs, but I didn't pay too much attention to them. Carlisle was in my face again, holding my head upright. "Bella, please. Get yourself together."

"Carlisle, I don't like this," Esme bit her lip. "She's a vampire, she can't go into shock, can she?"

"Into shock?" Edward repeated from the other side of the room. "What happened to her?"

"Everyone, just stop," Carlisle turned around to face them. "She needs to be alone right now. I'd suggest you all go to the kitchen or something. I'll call you back when she's alright again."

All of them slowly retreated, Esme guiding them away with her. I was at a loss for words, and yet I had so much to say. Everything was just confusing. I probably would've blacked out if I were still mortal. Carlisle put a reassuring hand on my shoulder and instructed for me to clear my thoughts and stay calm. I did as I was told, despite all my questions.

"Feeling better?" he asked after a while.

I opened my eyes. "Yeah. Much."

"Good," he replied, seating himself on the couch across from me. "So, are you ready to tell me what had struck you so badly that it had nearly put you in a rare vampire coma?"

I smiled at his joke, but returned back to my questions. "Well, first of all, did Alice ever ask you about a locket that I gave her? It's kind of dirty, but it's really beautiful? She told me that she'd ask you about it and get me answers."

"A locket?" he frowned. "You mean like a necklace? No… I never heard anything about it."

"Figures," I sighed. "I expected that."

"What was so important about it?"

"I found it in my dad's lawn a couple months ago," I started. "We both didn't know who's it was. I almost threw it out, but my dad got it back. And when I opened it…well, first off, I think the locket plays a song or something. Since it's been in the yard all that time, it obviously didn't work anymore. And anyway, it made this weak little croak…and I suddenly got a few memories from when I was in Volterra."

"Just like that?" Carlisle frowned. "I thought Edward said you couldn't remember anything from Volterra."

"I know, I couldn't," I explained. "But when I listened to that croak, I just… remembered. Not all of it, but some of it. I was with Caius in both memories."

"So…are you suggesting," Carlisle began. "That this locket somehow contains you memories of your stay with the Volturi?"

I nodded once. "It has to. It's no coincidence that I could just suddenly remember the second I opened this necklace…"

"Very interesting indeed," Carlisle then stood up. "Well, I don't see the problem of fixing this locket of yours. If you give it to me, I can probably get something done on it. Where is it?"

My mouth turned to a grim line. "Edward and Alice burned it when they threw it in the fireplace. It's gone."

Carlisle looked flabbergasted. "_Burned_ it? Now why would they do something like that?"

Edward suddenly entered the room, pushing Carlisle out of the way. "Bella, let me explain," he placed both his palms on my cheeks. "Alice and I didn't think it would be a good idea if you remembered. You would see yourself getting abused by him, for God's sake! I couldn't let you go through that again. And Rosalie…she was being her normal self. She just wanted you to suffer and let you see your pain. You know how she is."

"That's not true," Rosalie fiercely entered the room, eyes flaring at her brother. "_You_ and your _sister_ are liars. How dare you accuse me of doing such a thing! I have cared for your fiancée, Edward, more than both of you ever did in both your lifetimes _combined_!"

"Rosalie!" Esme looked shaken. The rest of the Cullens slowly crept back into the living room with wide eyes. Alice's hands covered her mouth in horror.

"_Don't_, Esme," Rosalie bit back at her. "I meant it. And I sure as hell am twice the vampire as those idiots." She pointed a menacing finger at Edward. "I knew from the start it was a bad idea to hire that Volturi guard! I _knew it_! I should have known you'd keep this up all this time!"

"Hire _what_ Volturi guard?" Carlisle demanded. "Edward- what is she talking about?"

"I have no freaking-"

"Oh, you know exactly what I'm talking about, you _coward_!"

The room went silent from her outburst. So many questions were being thrown, and I couldn't outtalk any of them to get answers.

"Tell her," Rosalie commanded, motioning towards me. "Tell her _everything_, Edward dearest. You are her fiancée after all."

"Damn you to hell, Rosalie," Edward spat, grabbing my arm and forcing me to leave the room. "Bella, c'mon. I'll explain everything once we've gotten out of here."

I desperately looked back at Rose, and from that truthful yet fierce some looked in her eye, I dug my heels into the ground. "Edward, wait. I need to know what she's talking about, first."

"All she said was rubbish," he insisted. "Forget about it."

"But…no. She meant some of the things she said-"

"I said forget about it!"

"NO!" I pealed his hand off my arm. "Tell me what's going on! _Someone_ tell me what's going on!"

All of the Cullens looked after us in silence. Not even Rosalie spoke up. She just had her eyebrows raised in expectation towards my desperate fiancée. Alice seemed to be lingering behind everyone else, and the rest of the Cullens looked completely clueless. I looked up at him. "If you're going to explain something to me…then I'm sure you can explain it to everyone else too."

"Its exactly what I said before," he turned to his family. "I just didn't want her to see herself getting abused. Is that so bad?"

"Getting abused?" Carlisle looked furious now. "By who?"

"The Volturi."

"_What_?" Esme gasped. "She looked fine when we picked her up!"

"Aro was kind enough to take her to the hospital after _Caius_ practically smacked her," Edward remarked, looking me square in the eye. I felt a chill at his words, being reminded of that fuzzy memory. He continued. "He was her personal protector, so they most likely spent loads of time together. It's pretty obvious that he was the one who abused her. After all, he never had a heart for humans."

My eyes fixed towards my shoes while I buried myself in shameful embarrassment. Everyone else looked more confused than cleared up at what Edward had said.

Perhaps it was true. All he was trying to do was protect me. Like a true husband should.

"Then why'd she hug him?" Emmett finally spoke.

What? Hug?

_What?_

My head drowning in a pit full of questions, I automatically left the room for everyone to continue arguing. I couldn't stand it anymore. This was just too much to bear. If what Edward was saying was true, why hadn't he ever told the rest of his family? The only ones who really seemed to figure out what he was talking about were his sisters, and Rosalie wasn't the least bit happy about it.

Then again, Edward had always been a good liar. I had seen the stories he had made up in mere seconds when he spoke to Charlie. But he never lied to family…did he? Would he really lie to me at a time like this, when our wedding was just weeks away?

I felt bad that I didn't trust him. What kind of fiancée was I, doubting everything that my soul mate partner said? It was wrong of me, but how could I ignore my instincts? Something was going on that I didn't know about, and it was really starting to piss me off.

Aro and Marcus were literally inches away from the door when I walked outside. Their expressions were blank and unreadable as they held a stack of papers, waiting for Carlisle to be done and talk to them about the preparations. No doubt they could hear everything that was going on.

"Where is he?" I asked them as politely as possible.

Aro seemed surprised. "Oh! He is just around the corner, dear."

"Thanks," I merely said, and pressed forward.

Once I completely passed them, I could hear one of them murmur. "A shame. This little charade of the Cullen boy's was starting to amuse me."

"Indeed," the other said. "Yet it is now more amusing at how he attempts to stay into it."

As I turned the corner, I focused on him leaning against the side of the house, narrowed eyes scanning the perimeter of the fields. He was either deep in thought, or he was trying to find something to do to occupy himself. Either way, I stepped forward, knowing I had to speak to him.

He was the key to something that was going on between my family and the Volturi. The key to my memories and my suspicions, my questions and my answers. My _locket._ He had to know something.

Once I put in a good three-yard distance between us, he finally looked up at me. I didn't give the awkwardness a chance to settle down. "So…can you hear what they're saying in there?"

He nodded briefly. "It would be fortunate for me if they leveled their voices down a few notches," he sighed. "I get sick of those who scream their lungs out."

I let out an understanding smile, but regained focus. "You know what they're talking about, don't you?"

He looked up at me again, all seriousness taking over his expression. Very slowly, he reached deep into his robes, and pulled out a necklace that seemed faintly similar to my locket. Wait…it _was_ my locket! No, it couldn't be. There was no way it could survive flames, and I would've caught his scent if he were in the room with Edward and Alice. It had to be an identical locket.

"I have a pretty good guess," he grinned weakly.

* * *

**Everything is narrowing down now :) These next few chapters will be exciting, so PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE review! And I promise I'll update before November 21 (Birthday!) **

**Also, I wanted to ask if you guys would go to my profile and vote for what the next pairing you'd want me to write for my next story! I've already got a few voters (thanks guys!), but I'd love it if I had some votes!  
All of the pairings I listed have already been semi-planned out on what the storyline will be. So far, the Aro/Bella is winning by a few votes…**

**My next story will probably be posted after 'Bound to a Blackened Soul' is finished and the same with 'New Life.'**

**Anyway, so yeah! Please review! Please vote! I'm begging ya! ^^ Thanks!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

* * *

**BELLA**

He must have noticed the bulge in my eyes as I watched him twirl the locket, because he ended up handing it to me. It looked so different than the one I had. This one was completely flawless, no dirt or mud engraved in the stones, no weak complexion. Just beauty. When my fingers found the knob, I pushed it open, preparing myself to feel more memories. Nothing happened. Only a small tune began to play.

Caius watched me with unmoving eyes, and I could see a flicker of disappointment when I made no movement of anything happening. He softly took the locket back.

"It's a different one than mine," I confirmed.

He nodded grimly. "They looked identical but they were very different on the inside. I overheard you say the Cullen boy burned yours…?"

"Yeah," I murmured. "He did. I don't know exactly why…but he said he didn't want me to see myself getting abused…"

I could see an amused grin creep up his lips at my words, shaking his head in the process. Did he think this was some sort of a joke? Harshly, I demanded. "Is what Edward said true? Did you actually abuse- wait, why are you laughing? Lord Caius, how is this the least bit funny to you?"

"It's funny," he explained. "That your precious Edward would ever think in his right mind that I would have the strength to hurt you."

My eyes widened at his words, all anger wiping from my face. "What the hell are you talking about? You hate humans! You hate _me_!"

"If I hated you so much," he was truly looking amused. "Then why did I buy you and myself matching lockets?"

I was flabbergasted. "_You_…bought that for me?"

"Well, of course," he leaned back against the house. "You turned me into a such a lovesick psychopath that I always did things around you that I couldn't explain. Perhaps at that point in time, I was just trying to get you to notice me. You loved jewelry, did you not? It was the perfect opportunity."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing! _Lovesick psychopath? _

He went on, a laid back grin still fixed upon his features. "I was so protective over you, too. All those curious, young males wanting to talk or be near you. I had tried to hide it, of course. But my temper just blew up whenever you spoke to another man. I even gave Felix a hard time, and he was only mildly interested."

I would have been blushing for sure if I were still human. My legs were frozen as our gazes locked on one another, and I didn't know how to respond to his words.

Thankfully, I snapped out of it. "You're trying to trick me, aren't you?"

"Pray tell, why would I waste time doing something like that?"

"Because…" I uttered. "Because…that's what you've been doing the entire time you've been here! I knew I shouldn't have let my guard down! Edward warned me you'd do something like this- play with my emotions! You're just trying to make me _like_ you so I'll…I don't know, but-"

"Bella, I know you are not so naïve," he said calmly. "You were in that room with the rest of the Cullens just a few minutes ago. You know your precious Cullen boy is hiding something. He is slipping as we speak."

"I don't care about what he's hiding anymore," I stifled. "I know whatever it was, he was just doing it to protect me. He loves me! He would never try to hurt-"

"He already has," he interrupted with much firmness. "More than you can know, or ever know. He had been selfish for fifteen years, and now he pays the price for his lies. You're a small girl, Bella. Tell me you haven't felt the falseness in his embraces or the hesitation in his words. Tell me you haven't wondered if he was telling the truth every time he spoke to you."

I was at a loss for words. My bottom lip began to tremble.

"Tell me," he said very softly. "That you haven't looked him in the eye and realized that he wasn't the one for you. That he wasn't your soul mate."

"No," I shook my head violently. "No, I never- _no_-"

"You said it yourself in Volterra," Caius declared. "Nothing was ever exciting in your relationship with him. It was too boring. Too perfect."

"I never would have said that!" I screeched. "I've always wanted a perfect relationship! I was lucky enough to find him when I first moved to Forks, and I've never been happier since!"

"Are you truly happy, Bella?" he asked. "Tell me right now, all hesitations aside. If you're truly happy, I will leave you now and never speak a word to you again. You can ban me from your life."

"No!"

"No?"

"Wait-no, I mean…" My hands grasped themselves in my hair. "Ugh! I came out here to ask for help, not to get more confused! Just tell me what's going on! The locket, Edward, everything! What were Rosalie and Edward talking about?"

"I thought you did not care what he was hiding," Caius pointed out.

"No, no, I do care," I sighed. "I'm just…_really_ pissed off. Nobody's telling me crap, and you've practically brainwashed me!"

"Brainwashed?" he raised an eyebrow. "Brainwashed is a very strong word. How have I done so?"

My feelings had been standing over the edge of a cliff for quite some time, and now, I let them fall out. "I want everything to go back to the way it was! When I trusted Edward with my life and my emotions, when he would comfort me every night and tell me how beautiful or perfect I was for him. When I would never have a doubt in our happiness and our life together from here on out. Ever since the day I met him, until the day I heard of these random attackers vandalizing the country, I never had one doubt about him being the perfect husband for me. Until the Volturi came to help us, and _you_ showed up."

He watched me carefully, as my hands dug themselves into the roots of my hair, words tumbling aimlessly from my mouth. "Every damn time you'd walk by and notice me I'd get this weird, intrigued feeling that would just randomly appear out of nowhere! You were supposed to be this vicious monster that beat me and hated me to the very core of your being, and then for some ridiculous reason you start treating me like I'm your friend, or your-your companion, or hell- even your…your…"

"Consort?" Caius guessed with all seriousness.

My head nearly exploded, and I pointed to him crazily. "See- _that_! That is where you've lost me! You actually have the nerve to think that I freaking _dated_ you when I was in Volterra!"

"Well, for what happened to your feelings while you were us, I am keeping my mouth shut, because I believe your precious Cullen boy will tell you soon enough," he leaned forward, catching me full in the eye. "But do know this, because you need to know the truth. You bewitched me from the day you walked through the doors of the Volturi palace, and even against my will, you completely and diligently had me falling in love with you."

A good thing I was no longer human, because I would've stopped breathing altogether. But after a few seconds, I spoke. "You're mad."

"You wanted the truth, and I gave it to you," Caius said in a matter-of-fact way, holding up his hands. "You're probably just so used to lies that you can't comprehend anything truthful at the moment."

"I think I would've at least remembered if you were in any way fascinated with me," I spat. "Because it would be so freaking ridiculous! Why would you ever try and trick me like that? Its so sick and- _Ugh_! What the hell is going on!"

The world seemed to spin with my mind on all this confusion. First, Edward was trying to hide something, and now Caius was all romance-ish…God, help me. God, _help me_.

"No-_no-no_!" I screeched, running around aimlessly. "No- you can't ruin this! I won't let you! I won't let myself forget about Edward for you! I can't fall in love with you- I can't- I won't- I just _can't_-"

"Bella," he murmured, his hands suddenly locking around my wrists. "Be calm. Please."

My world began rising into peacefulness. I did as he instructed. He spoke. "Fifteen years he has taken what we have both wanted and kept it locked away. The locket could've brought you back, but that hope has vanished. Only now do I realize…_yes_…"

"Um, what are you-"

"Hold on," he said, releasing me in the process. He started to the corner of the house, where I overheard him speaking to Aro. "Please tell me you've brought it with you."

"Why, of course," Aro responded. "But I don't think it could possibly help with what you're trying to do. Remember what Chelsea had instructed? Besides, it is very low on battery, and I simply cannot have it- _wait_, brother!"

Caius returned in a couple of seconds, because he completely left Aro behind, heading towards my direction. He stopped nearly a yard away, while he switched on a button on what I believed to be…a game boy? What the hell?

"Wait- what are you-"

"Bella," he looked up at me, a strange twinkle of satisfaction in his eyes. "Don't worry. This will make everything back to the way it was. I promise."

Aro and Marcus stepped from behind the house, watching in awe as Caius pressed a handful of buttons on the player. Aro was now beaming with delight as he realized whatever his companion was doing, while Marcus just stared with a cheerful eyebrow curved upwards. I suddenly felt uneasy at what was going on, and what devilish thing they appeared to be doing.

"Edward!" I heard Alice scream from somewhere inside. "They found something! Any second- _Edward_-!"

"_No_!" Edward roared in return, and he was soon halted right next to Aro and Marcus in a few short seconds. His face was torn with horror, as Caius looked back at him in satisfaction.

"Game's over, boy," Caius declared. "I have waited too long, and I'm taking her back."

Then, he pushed another button.

A cheery Pac-Man song played.

My body collided with the ground.

* * *

_Caius threw his hands in the air in annoyance. "Would you __please __turn that revolting thing off?"_

_"Why? It hasn't done anything to you."_

_"Here, smell it. It really does smell like tangerine."_

_"__No__."_

_"C'mon. It smells better than human blood."_

_"Look. I only have three outfits. And none of them have been washed in almost three weeks. I need more."_

_"Curse your feeble mortal needs."_

_"Why are you constantly staring at me?"_

_Oops. He caught me. __Crap._

_"Sorry," I said quickly, locking my eyes back on the book._

_"That does not answer my question."_

_"You just look…" __Beautiful? Gorgeous? Totally attractive? __"…different."_

_"Save her," the most familiar and comforting voice begged. "__Please__- just save her. __SAVE HER__!"_

_"Why the bloody hell would you do something like that? You're a freaking vampire __lord __and I'm just-"_

_"My love," Caius interrupted, and my heart skipped a lethal beat. "You aren't 'just' anything. You're the first person I ever truly cared for. You're the one I love and want for all eternity, forever and so- on."_

_"Oh, but Caius," Marcus countered a bit disappointedly. "Bella and I were having such a good discussion."_

_"Too bad," Caius smirked. "It's my turn to argue with most irritating and lovely human in the world."_

_"But then come back," he breathed softly, his eyes filled with so much hurt and sadness, it made me want stab myself if I didn't do as he wished. "Come back to me."_

_After a moment of silence, I nodded once. "I promise._

I promise.

_I promise._

My eyes fluttered open after the wind of memories hit me. Everything was memorable now. Everything. There was nothing fuzzy in my memories of Volterra. It was all there.

Everyone was crowded next to me, trying to make sure I was alright and ask what the hell had happened to make me lose my balance and completely black out. Esme helped me back up, and I let her. My eyes took in my surroundings. I was in Forks.

Why was I still in Forks?

My eyes studied through all the Volturi's faces and Cullen's faces.

My eyes finally found his.

"Caius," I breathed.

* * *

**Well, I did promise I'd get it done on November 21 ;) It was just really late ^^ But here's my gift to you guys and I hope you enjoy it. YAY- I'm finally sixteen! :DD**

**Btw, thank you to the people who voted for my poll, your votes were greatly appreciated ;) Apparently, the Aro/Bella is practically killing all the others, so I guess my next story will be that pairing then. **

**Review ^^**


	20. Chapter 20

**Short chapter, but a very exciting one :) There is a tiny bit of language in this one, so be aware. Thats why this is rated T. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 20**

* * *

**BELLA**

His pale face was carved perfectly, like it was made for a god. Strands of white blonde hair fell carelessly around his ears and eyes, a few creeping down the back of his neck. His eyes were golden stone.

Since everyone had begun to back away, he stepped forward and kneeled in front of me, one hand holding my own. He looked like he wanted to speak, but he couldn't. He looked too happy to say anything.

I tore my eyes away from his, and studied our surroundings once again. What the hell had happened? Why the hell was I still in Forks? I said I was going back once Charlie was better…_was_ Charlie better? Did he make it okay?

Once I found the horrified vampire in the background, more memories flooded in. No. I was supposed to marry him. He asked me to marry him, and I accepted.

I accepted?

"Did it work?" one of the Volturi guards uttered, Chelsea I think her name was. Her hands were over her mouth, eyes ringing with hope.

No one answered her. Everyone just stared at me, waiting for my reaction. Automatically, I looked back at Caius, and demanded. "How long?"

He knew what I meant. "Fifteen years," he stated firmly.

I let him help me up, and I researched for the black haired vampire. I took a couple of easy steps forward, and pointed towards her. "That night. When I was standing at my window listening to the locket. I remember now. I remember you there, and you _did_ something. What did you do?"

Chelsea hesitatingly glanced at Caius for approval. When he nodded, she turned herself back to me. "I was paid to erase your memories. All the ones when you came to the Volturi for a second time. I still feel so _horrible_ for doing it…but I wasn't in my right mind when I did it-"

"Did you know about this, Alice?" Carlisle suddenly stepped in, facing the pixie vampire shrinking shamefully on the other side of me. "Surely you would have seen something? Any vision at all?"

Alice was melting in her own sorrow. She croaked. "Carlisle-"

"Alice said she couldn't see anything that was happening to Bella in Volterra," Jasper cut in, protecting his mate. "Its not her fault. She didn't have anything to do with it, I'm sure of it."

"You are _so_ damn naïve," Rosalie snarled at him. "You can feel her emotions, can't you? Don't tell me you haven't felt her _wickedness!_ Her betrayal to her _own_ family!"

"She never-"

"No, Jazz," Alice put a hand on his shoulder, sobbing without tears. "Stop. I don't deserve to be protected right now. Just _stop_!"

"Alice," Jasper said, eyes frowning in concern.

Everyone seemed to know what was going on with Alice except me. When no one spoke up, Rosalie threw up her hands in exasperation. "Oh, for crying out loud! Since she won't say it, I will. She's been hiding her emotions from you, idiot! You haven't been able to feel a thing because she knows you'll never forgive her. That _none_ of you will forgive her!"

"And what exactly did she do that was so bad?" Jasper challenged her.

"She freaking _paid_ Chelsea to erase Bella's memories!"

"I was only trying to help her!" Alice screamed, and then desperately looked at me. "Bella, please," she grasped my arm. "I'm your sister! I saw what was happening to you there, and I thought you'd get hurt if you stayed with him! You were still human and-"

"Get off," I told her evenly.

Her eyes rounded, but she still had hold of my arm. "Bella-"

"Bitch, I said _get off_!"

Alice automatically let go, and stepped back several feet, whimpering. This language was so unlike me, but I didn't even care anymore. It all made sense now and it severely pissed me off. I was so enraged that I felt like ripping something to shreds.

Alice betrayed me in so many ways, that I couldn't even look in the same direction as her. She must have saw I was happy was him, and yet she still tried to strip me from him. She was no sister to me. She never would be again.

The rest of the Cullens were beginning to look as furious as I was. Jasper refused to stand next to her, and retreated behind Emmett who looked like he was about to beat someone to death. Carlisle has his entire face buried in his hands, and Esme looked like she was about to cry. How Alice had hid all of it from her family was clever. Now it would be impossible for them to ever talk to her once more.

Casually, I stalked over to the vampire behind the crowd. He didn't take his eyes off the ground when I approached him, bronze hair reflecting lazily from the sky. "So," I said with so much calmness, it surprised me. "I take it… you helped pay for the memory erasing as well?"

Finally, he looked up. There was no sorrow in his face. "I did you a favor."

"Did you now?"

"Yes, I did," he insisted. "Where the hell do you think you'd be if I hadn't saved you from all that? You really think you loved him? The only reason you met him was because of me, the one you actually fell in love with! I have been with you twice as long as him. I know you better, I can take care of you better, and god-damn it- I love you so much more than he could ever dream-"

"Listen here, dearest _Edward_," All my thoughts began to pour out. "I'm going to make this as simple and quick as possible because I refuse to be wasted away in your presence for another second. You and Alice were both _wrong_. I never had any memories or common sense to say it before, memories that you had _stolen_ from me- but I can say this now. You had no right to keep me from him- bottle up my happiness and make me believe it was elsewhere. If you truly loved me, Edward, you would have put _my_ feelings about this into account, whether or not this was dangerous for me."

Something urged me to continue. "Perhaps this is just some sick game of yours. To lie to me, to make me believe I felt something for you when there was really nothing there. Well, I hope you're happy with yourself now. I'm glad you can't sleep at night, so you can sit there and think about what you've done to me and how much you have taken from us all. You can sit there _without_ a mate and pretend to hug the dead shell I was for fifteen god-damned years."

Edward looked stunned at my speech. No one spoke once I finished, and made way for me as I started to walk off. I was so angry with him, yet I still couldn't find myself ridding all feelings with him. Yes, he had used me. He had lied to me and everything I said was true. But I still had a part of me with all that I felt from when my memories were erased. The rush of being betrayed by my recent lover and his sister was beginning to become too much.

I needed to get out of there.

Leaving one last glance at Caius, I turned on my heel and fled the scene, trying to get away from whatever was trying to hold me back.

* * *

**Next chapter will be much, much longer :) And it will most likely be in Caius's POV! **

**I'm sorry I didn't really use any physical assault in this chapter, like most of you guys wanted. But, this is after all how Bella would interact, not how we would XD The next few chapters will be roller coasters too, so please stick around :) Thanks for all your guys' support and I would love some reviews! ^^**


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

* * *

**CAIUS**

It was utterly heartbreaking to watch her disappear.

I had a strong feeling she would to begin with. So much had happened to her in the last few days that it must have been too unbearable, knowing her. But she had to know what was going on. I couldn't let her remain in the dark, no matter how much it would mess her happy relationship with the Cullen boy. She had to know.

I needed to talk to her.

Aro seemed to read my agenda before I took off after her. He grabbed hold of my shoulder, and held me firmly in place. "Leave her for now, Brother. She needs to find out who she is before you fill her in with more."

I gave one nod in his direction. Aro was right. For an irritating partner, he did have his moments.

The Cullen boy still seemed baffled by my love's amazing speech. He barely moved, and it seemed difficult for him to find his way out of his scowl. During her entire insult, I felt like cheering her on, waves of pure satisfaction and sweet revenge rolling through. The boy had this coming from the beginning. And it was the greatest honor to see it up close.

_Edward's_ Bella was dead.

_My_ Bella rose from the ashes.

The pixie-like vampire had collapsed against the side of the house, sobbing loudly in her hands. She made the only noise out of us all, and frankly, nobody thought she deserved to be comforted. I agreed with that statement all the way. Any person who took part in the rearranging of my Bella Swan should never get the least bit of formality.

Carlisle looked so strained that it seemed to weaken my contentment. I always had a strong feeling he never took part in it, no matter how much he wanted his son and Bella together. Lying and hiding were two words that never fit in Carlisle's description.

Yet it was obvious that Carlisle would never banish the two minions from his clan. They had been with him too long, and he became too attached to them. The same with his wife. With hope, they'd at least keep an eye out for their foolish children the next time they planned out something so foul. That is, if either Cullen boy or girl had any wickedness left in them.

Before anyone could make another move, I distantly heard a phone ring deep inside the house. Carlisle made no reaction to get it, until it reached the last ring. "Emmett," he glanced over to his strongest son. "Get it for me, will you?"

Emmett was gone in a flash.

After about a minute, he returned. His expression was grim. "Bella's dad. Charlie."

"What did he want?"

The strong boy grimaced. He told us everything there was to tell.

My legs started off before he finished talking. I needed to find her as quickly as possible.

* * *

Her scent was still fresh, and leaded East. This worried me beyond belief. We were heading in the exact direction the strange attackers were going to come from. And she was completely alone.

I needed to find her _now_.

Only now did I find myself regretting that I had returned her memories. This was the worst time to do so, especially with what was going on with her father. She needed to know, and it wasn't helping that she was practically walking right into this attacker army.

Eventually, I caught up with her. She was sitting next to a marble white fountain surrounded by bushes and white flowers. Water ran smoothly out of the outlets, spilling loudly on to the rest of it. It was quite a scene, yet her presence made it a thousand times brighter and more beautiful.

Her back was to me, long brunette hair falling down her waist. It looked like she was breathing heavily, as if she were about to collapse from exhaustion. But I knew that wasn't the case. She was completely traumatized.

"I need to be alone," she said suddenly, sensing me. Part of me was drawn back, but I knew deep down her words were reasonable after all that happened to her.

I slowly stepped forward, and continued to do so until she actually turned around to face me. I nearly crumpled in awe from her beauty, but I forced myself to speak. "You need someone."

"Look, I know I'm supposed to love you," her hands covered her face. "I'm sorry- I really am…I just need some time. Everything's so _confusing_ and-"

"Its alright," I told her reassuringly. She looked up at me in disbelief. "I understand."

After several seconds, Bella slightly smiled. "…Thanks."

I nodded back. At the moment, she did need to be alone, but I decided to stay nearby, just in case she wanted to talk. The frantic news I needed to tell her started to fade from my mind. A good ten minutes passed until she looked back up at me. "Why didn't you ever come after me?"

I felt drawn back, remembering the agonizing pain after all those years. Fifteen years of absolute disgust and hate and sorrow. All those things I thought she had wiped from me had returned, until I saw her a few weeks ago. My eyes met her beautiful golden ones, and I spoke. "I did. Once."

Her eyebrows rose. "I don't remember-"

"We never saw each other," I interrupted. "But I did come. I looked for you. Aro and Marcus thought I was hunting when we came to the United States to take care of some newborns. Instead, I left for an entire day and tried to find Forks. It took me so many hours…"

Bella waited. Her eyes were sparkling.

"I finally found it," I continued, reflecting on the memory. "I came to the sign that said 'Welcome to Forks'. And I just stood there, watching it, remembering everything that happened when you came to Volterra and how you never came back…and…"

I paused. It was beginning to be harder to talk about it.

"I turned around and went back to Aro and Marcus. They never found out I tried to look for you."

Bella looked stunned, disappointment ringing in her expression. "But… you didn't try…? I would've been there- I had always been there! I was waiting for you, I…even though I didn't know it- I waited!"

"I know that now," My eyes closed in defeat, and I sat next to her on the edge of the fountain. "But back then, I had no idea what was going on. Three thousand years of living can make one a bit insane, like Aro for instance. And I was mad with cruelty and how harsh I was. When you came into my life, you were so bright and purging, and everything made sense of why I was transformed and put on this world for so long. But when you left, it…nothing made sense anymore. I had serious doubts that you ever loved me and…I panicked."

Bella listened intently. I went on. "I couldn't bring myself to continue pass that sign. My pride stepped in, and I walked off, thinking that if you ever did come back, you would come back yourself, not me retrieving you. I was so foolish."

A gentle breeze caused her long hair to rustle along with the wind. She awkwardly pushed it back down in its position, even though it looked beautiful the way it was. "So," she said. "You didn't know what happened to me and my memories until a little while ago?"

"Not until I caught Chelsea getting back from doing it to another person many years afterwards," I explained, clenching my face at the memory. "I still can't believe she betrayed the Volturi like so."

"No," Bella suddenly said. "No, what she did was horrible. But it was no-where near as much as a betrayal to what Edward and Alice had done. Chelsea at least was trying to provide for her husband, without asking you guys for money. Edward…he knew how much I had loved you but he only thought selfishly, because he wanted me as well. And Alice…Alice must have thought it was best if I remained with her brother. Best for her, too. She wanted someone to dress up and talk to about clothes, since Rosalie never did that stuff with her. She betrayed me just as much as Edward…"

"Will you ever forgive them in the future?" I asked her.

Slowly, she shook her head. "The thought is so infuriating at the moment, I don't think I ever can. But…I might. I'm too much of a nice person. I get pushed around too easily."

"You know," I told her. "When you were at Volterra, you held yourself particularly well. You always bossed me around."

Bella smiled brightly, and it was beautiful. "Yeah, I was a bit of a jerk, wasn't I? I don't know whatever came over me, but you were just so easy to piss off for some reason."

I returned her smile. "Well, of course. I was the grumpiest old thing in the world. Still am, sometimes. But, my point being, you can be anything you want. I think you have the potential to tell them no for good, if you wanted. But if you want my advice, I would go back to them once you've thought everything out, and forgive them."

Her eyes widened in complete disbelief. I shocked myself even a little bit.

"But," she uttered. "I thought you of all people would be telling me to forget them and hate them and-"

"No," I said softly. "On my way trying to track you down a little while ago, I realized the true freedom of letting go. You are the best person I know, Bella Swan. I believe that if you forgive them, you'll be able to move forward and feel a lot better about the whole situation. I do not suggest you continue on with your marriage with Edward, but… you understand, correct?"

She nodded, a slight grin coming to her lips. "You know, you're a very wise guy, Caius."

"Three thousand years of living," I said. "I've seen a lot of things. Only now do I realize how it takes into account later on."

"Well, if I do forgive Edward and Alice," she turned to me. "Will you forgive them as well?"

"Lets not get carried away," I returned, and she laughed brightly, smacking my arm in a somewhat playful manner. I officially feel like the luckiest man in the world, laughing with the most beautiful girl, both of us finally together and ready to finally get what we've always wanted. Nothing felt like it could ruin this moment.

After a while of talking, I felt her head lightly lean against my shoulder. "Will you wait for me, Caius? Wait until I've officially cleared up my mind and everything? Because I will go with you and everything, I swear. Just like I promised all those years ago. That I'd come back."

"Took you long enough," I grinned at her. "But yes. We have the rest of our lives still ahead of us. I will wait another three thousand years if I had to."

"I might be a little less than that," she said. "But that is reassuring. Thank you, by the way, for comforting me. Everything makes a lot more sense now, and I feel ten times better than before. We can go back now, if you want. I'm ready to face Edward and Alice again. I think."

While she stands up and dusts herself off, my mind snaps back into reality. I have to tell her about what her father said, and we have to get out of here before any attackers show up. She has to know as soon as possible.

"Wait, Bella," I grab her arm, causing her to stop and look at me. "There's something I had come to tell you beside the fact of wanting to speak to you. Your father called the Cullen's house because you weren't answering your cell phone. He's been sent out to help stop the attacks. They didn't give him time to pack or anything. He wanted to call to tell you that he loved you and that's he's sorry."

Bella's face crumpled throughout my whole speech. Her fingers raked at her face and she gave a shriek of terror. "W-When did he leave Forks? _When_? Can we still get to him? Can we beat him to the attackers!"

"I'm not sure," I said honestly. "Lets get back to the others. They'll know what to do."

A few seconds after we both race out of the city, a ravishing scent catches our attentions. We both slow at it, feeling both hungry yet horrified.

Blood.

And a lot of it.

Without warning, she dashes the opposite direction, heading further into the city at a rabid pace. I cannot tell whether or not she's smelled her father's blood perhaps, or if she merely is wondering who has been recently killed. Either way, I follow her, not bothering to stop her.

We round several streets and deserted buildings until we finally turn down another street and stop in our tracks. Before us, very many dead bodies were scattered among the length of the road, none of them drained. Instead, their blood is smeared upon the walls and each other's faces, the bodies all ranging from elderly people to mere children. My being feels up with utter dread when I take sight of the large red 'S' on the highest part of the wall. Bella gives out a terrified shriek at the scene.

How had we not noticed the blood before? Or had the attackers been that quick at killing all these people right under our noses…? It seemed impossible. The way the blood smelled, it didn't happen recently, but it didn't happen too long ago. The attackers had already moved on.

_Already moved on._

I froze in my spot.

The attackers had to be in Forks.

* * *

**Uh oh- things are piling up! Thank you guys for all your awesome reviews and I'd LOVE some more! :D **

**As far as my poll goes, I most likely will pick up a plot for Aro/ Bella since that pairing had pretty much all of the excitement. I'm also most likely going to do a Jane/ Jacob- since the plot for that has been building up in my head all damn year! That story will most likely be in just Jacob's POV.**

**For Stuck in Volterra 3, I'm seriously debating whether or not to do it. I have a few ideas I could do for it, but not for sure. If you guys are really for a 3****rd**** one, msg me for some ideas or something ;)**

**Review ^^**


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

* * *

**CAIUS**

From the corner of my eye, I could see Bella's legs had given out from under her, her figure now crumpled to the ground. Automatically, I knelt down to the ground and held on to her, turning her away from the bloody massacre. I had seen brutal deaths all my life, so it wasn't anything new to me. But to her, to _Bella_… it made sense how she couldn't stand to look at it.

"Your father," I had to ask. "Was he in there?"

The question took her off guard. After a few seconds, she shook her head. "No, but…no. He's not in there. But _all_ those _people_…"

"I know," I told her as softly as I could. "The only thing we can do for them now is to get back to Forks, and stop them before they hurt any more humans. Can you walk?"

"Y-Yeah," she uttered, holding on to my shoulders for support. "I'm fine, really. It's just…I'm never going to get that image out of my head."

It severely angered me that the attackers had tainted Bella with bloody images. She never deserved to see such cruel deaths. I always hoped I would be the only one that had to deal with something so dark and terrifying. "We must go," I helped her all the way up, having no time to comfort her anymore.

I let her run in front of me the entire way back to Forks, in case she slowed down without me seeing. A part of me knew, however, that she'd never turn back after what I told her about her father.

The fog in the rain town had thickened, and the rain was now beginning to pour obnoxiously. Bella dashed inside Carlisle's house when we arrived, and I headed towards the Volturi cabin, bursting open the door when it appeared to be locked.

"Aro!" I called loudly, expecting to see my dark haired companion, or at least a guard. But the tables remained straightened, the torches near the roof blown out, with only a trickle of smoke coming out of them.

The cabin was entirely empty.

Bella suddenly appeared in the doorway, her dark brown hair sticking to her neck from the rain. "The Cullens aren't in the house. None of them. Any sign of the Volturi?"

I shook my head, frowning in the process. Where the hell would they go? We had only been gone for about an hour or so.

"They could've met up with the attackers," Bella suggested. "I don't know where, though. They didn't leave any track of their scents."

I thought this over. That had to be the reason. Aro would never bring along _everyone_ if the problem were small. They had to have met up with them and taken all the vampires they had for battle.

"Do you have a cell phone?" I asked her. "If their scents aren't in the air, then perhaps we can find out where they are by calling them."

"My cell phone's still at Charlie's," she said in a defeated tone. "And the Cullen's never had a house phone. They never needed one because they all had their own cell phones. We can go to Charlie's house and grab it real quick if you want. It's not like he'll be there to stop us…"

A sad but truthful statement. "Sure," I replied.

Bella seemed washed with sadness when we approached her father's old house. I understood where it was coming from. She wasn't, after all, allowed a simple goodbye. Just like when the Cullens took her from me all those years ago. Too short of a notice.

I dearly wished her father were still alive.

"Want to wait outside, or come in?" she turned to me. I merely gave her a humorless smile, and followed her inside, examining the place and I went. Her father's house certainly had better years before, cracks in the ceilings and worn out paint. But it did have a comforting feel to it, and I could see how she had grown attached.

Bella searched all over the counters and beneath couch cushions for her phone. "Damn it," she repeatedly muttered. When I offered to help her search, she insisted I stay put, and that she was going to check upstairs.

With nothing to do, I wandered around the first floor of the house, stopping when I approached the house phone. She could always use that one, but I doubt she would have had Carlisle's number memorized. I picked up the phone and examined its contents until I noticed a new message on the receiver.

Since Bella didn't seem to find her cell phone yet, I pressed a button and listened to the message for her father.

A woman's weak voice came out from the machine. "_Hey, Charlie…its me. Um…I just got your message, and I'm sorry I couldn't get to it earlier. Phil had a game, and…_"

My eyes narrowed to a frown. Who was this woman?

The message continued. "_So, I know you probably won't get this in time… actually, I'm sure you won't get to it, but…Charlie, please don't do this. I know you love your work, you always did. But Bella needs you, and I- I mean…she really loves you and she can't live without you if you go out there…_"

The woman began to sniffle, and I can tell she's trying her best to cover it up. After a couple seconds, she kept going, her shaken voice officially betraying her. "_Charlie, please__. Come back…you can't go off and kill yourself…no matter how loyal you are, we need you, Charlie… _please-"

The message cut off. Perhaps that was as far as the receiver would let a message go, and it irritated me. Bella was in the doorframe when I turned around. Her face was shaken with grief.

"That was my mom."

More sadness had to be piling up inside her now. Slowly, I moved from my spot near the receiver to in front of her, doing everything in my power to comfort her. "Its alright," she assured me, giving me the best smile she could. "I'm fine."

"Bella," I said, not buying her expression.

After a few moments, her face crumpled, and she buried it in my chest, her fingers clutching my robes tightly. Her disappointment and her fear scratched its way into myself, for I was feeling the way she did. Watching her become like this…

One of my arms embraced her around the waist, while the other softly positioned itself in her hair.

"Your mother will see him again," I promised her. "And so will you."

I knew she wouldn't take my words so positively. "No…" she whimpered. "You can't guarantee that. Nobody can. You saw the way they killed all those people in that town…"

"With the rate the attackers are going," I started. "Wherever the humans go, the attackers would've already passed on. They're too fast for humans to catch."

"What if _we_ get killed by them?" she looked up at me, golden eyes sparkling with fear. "You know very well that it's possible. They could kill us _easily_."

"I won't allow it," I declared.

Bella remained glued in my embrace for a while. It didn't matter where the Cullens or the rest of the Volturi were anymore. I just wanted to protect her with everything I had. But even I had to admit the odds were not looking too favorable for me. These _things _had killed Volturi guards with ease.

Suddenly, a strong scent mugged the air, and my head snapped upwards.

There were vampires nearby.

"What is it?" she asked me, not taking in the scent yet.

"Vampires," I murmured.

She seemed to catch on quickly. "Familiar?"

I shook my head. "Unfamiliar."

In all my three thousand years, I had met possibly every vampire in existence. If I did not recognize this scent, there was a good chance these were not our friends.

"Come on," I grabbed her hand, and started to hurry outside.

"Wait!" she dug her heels in the ground. "If you don't recognize their scents, then we shouldn't be running towards them. Lets go find Carlisle and Aro, and then approach them. They could be the attackers!"

"I know," I stated. "Your idea was my original plan. We need to leave the house before they pick up our scents. Then for sure all hell will break loose."

Before we could take another step however, the ceiling above us shook violently. The ceiling fans rumpled at the movement, and a few cracks appeared in the dark green paint. Bella had completely froze, grasping onto my arm with amazing force. She knew just as well as I that something was on the second floor.

"Back door?" I whispered.

She couldn't seem to muster any words, so she just nodded, her eyes wide with fright. We both dashed outside, Bella smashing herself through the glass door with me at her heels. It was impossible to focus on the foul scent coming from upstairs, but I could guarantee it wasn't a vampire.

Yet it was _slightly_ familiar…

Oh, Lord Almighty.

_No_.

It couldn't be.

Bella turned around, her hair getting darker from the rain. She pulled frantically on my arm. "Caius? C'mon! What are you-"

"Wait," I held on to her, whirling back to face the house. "I know what they are."

Just like I expected, the entire house began to crumble from the weight of the creatures, the roof cracking in half. Sounds of shattering glass and explosions bounced off the abandoned roads, and smoke flared once the entire house met the earth. We were both a good enough distance away from the event, but it still was horrifying to watch.

"No…" Bella uttered. Her home was gone.

And from the ashes of the smoke, eleven-foot-tall beasts with murky brown hair and streaks of grey stepped forward, shaking off a few broken house ornaments. When our eyes met, their casual stances tensed into ones of pure aggression, teeth baring viciously.

The memory flickered through my mind as I faced another Child of the Moon. It was so many years ago, perhaps over a thousand, when I had met up with one during night hours. The way it nearly tore me to shreds, vigorous barking and cut throat teeth…the memory would never escape my mind. As well as the image of the wolf slaughtering my younger brother…

There were only two wolves in total that had stepped from Bella's house, but I knew already that they could outnumber us easily. I automatically pushed Bella behind me, and stepped back a few feet to keep a good distance. I fought against all my instincts to take her and run.

The closest one to us, the darker one, snarled loudly, and prepared to attack until a voice nearby said casually. "Ah, Jeremy. Give the man and the girl some space. Lets not hurt the nice people."

Both Bella's head and my own snapped in the direction of the voice. A good twenty yards away, three figures stood in the mist of the smoke, the pouring rain masking any specific details to them. They were all dressed in dark colors, however, their scents not giving off any sign of a heartbeat or blood.

These were the attackers.

Three vampires and two children of the moon.

* * *

**Hm, I bet that wasn't as everyone expected ;) But can these attackers be underestimated? **

**Hope you guys liked the chapter! The next one is being written currently and will be posted sometime before Christmas :D**

**Special 'Happy Gilmore' quote:**

**Happy: **Hey Virginia, we should go on that date. I've been pretty good lately.

**Virginia: **Oh really? What's this I hear about you breaking a rake and throwing it into the woods?

**Happy: **What? I didn't _break_ it; I was just testing its durability, and then I _placed_ it in the woods because its made of wood, and I just thought it should be with its family.

**Review ^^**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

* * *

**BELLA**

The first thing I almost blurted out when those two huge creatures emerged from the remains of Charlie's house was _'Jacob.'_

And apparently, doing that would've been really stupid.

They were wolves, but they could never be apart of Sam's pack. If I had thought that Quileute group was big, then I was really kidding myself. These creatures were much larger in height and size, and something else about them made them seem a lot more frightening.

My grip on Caius's robe tightened.

Where were the Cullens when we needed them? We couldn't face these things alone. And I seriously didn't want to be separated from Caius when I just got him back after all these years.

And to make it worse, the wolves had _vampires_ for owners.

Caius was quite calm throughout the entire event. One of his arms had pushed me behind him, and he held a ferocious stance with a firm look. He knew what he was doing.

"So," Caius spoke in a confident tone. "I presume you are the ones terrorizing the country?"

One of the figures in the rain cocked his head slightly to the side. "I wouldn't use the word _terrorizing_, my good man. We just decide to be thorough in getting our thoughts across."

The voice sounded close to Aro's. That same animalistic coyness, but serious all the same. I searched my mind to try and find something familiar about the attacker's voice, something that would help Caius and I waste time. Hopefully, by now, the Cullens and Aro would've picked up our scents and the attackers', and we on their way to help us.

"Your thoughts could have been heard clearly, without wasting the lives of so many people, gentlemen," Caius answered back, spitefully. "That includes the life of a most loyal guard to the Volturi."

At his words, the three figures strolled closer, the wolves on their heels. I attempted to move backward, but Caius gripped my arm, keeping me in place. My knees felt like they were going to buckle from the weight of fear, but I forced myself to be as brave as the blonde vampire.

The attackers' faces came into view. The first, the one who spoke, was surprisingly good looking. High cheekbones with full lips and a cheeky grin that was both irritating and dashing. His dark hair was cropped short, and his eyes were the total opposite of calm. It reminded me, and probably Caius, of Athenodora.

The second was nothing special, but added intensity to the first. His eyes were low red and devilish, tamed and wild dirty blonde hair that was tainted dark from the rain. And the third was a tall blonde guy, expressionless yet mysterious. They all must have been normal looking in their human years. Now, their eyes brought the best of the craziness.

"Well I'll be damned," the first raised both his eyebrows. "You're one of them, are you not? The ones with the power."

Caius slowly reached to his Volturi pendant and showed it to them, keeping a straight face. "We do not just have the power, gentlemen. We keep the peace and punish anyone who doesn't oblige."

The smallest of a grin snuck upon the first one's lips. It wasn't a comforting sight at all, especially since we weren't outnumbering them or anything. But Caius felt confident, and that made me feel better.

The first finally averted his gaze from Caius, and settled it to me. The second followed his actions, and I felt myself shrinking further and further behind Caius's shoulder. A slight frown escaped the first's eyes, and I could almost seem him forming a question about who I was and why I was with him. Luckily, in the end, his questions about me weren't very important to him and he proceeded by looking back at Caius.

"I must tell you, good sir, we had not planned to encounter you yet," he explained. "We were waiting to save you and the other ones for last. It is unfortunate that we met up currently. Our schedule is now officially lost."

"My apologies," Caius backfired. "But when you cause such a bizarre murder spree, you cannot expect the Volturi to sit around and wait for you to come to us. Like I said before, we keep the peace. And by doing so, we will eliminate anyone who poses a threat to the Volturi, or the species."

The wolves began to snarl. Caius looked at them evenly, but I could hear the hesitation in his voice. "Perhaps Aro and I had missed a few vampires to give the yearly guidelines to. Otherwise, you would have known it was forbidden to form alliances with children of the moon."

Children of the Moon? Was Jacob one of those? I would have remembered if he used that exact term. And he never did.

"Never?" the first looked surprised. "And what is the reason you are against these beautiful creatures? They are quite useful when they are under your command."

"I'm sure they are, as any loyal guard dog would be," Caius answered. "But our reasons are our reasons. Anyone who dares to question so will be eliminated. Many young vampires like yourselves had failed to follow our rules, and were executed before they could turn around and face us. All werewolves are savage beasts and, have been hunted for thousands of years to near extinction."

I suddenly didn't feel so good about ever introducing Caius to Jacob. Jacob was just as much of a werewolf as these creatures. But it_ was_ understandable why Caius hated them so much. Little Darius got mauled by one, and that was the only family Caius had left at the time.

"Well, it is truly none of my business what benefits you decide to use," the first said. "But _we_ find them useful. Perhaps you've misunderstood them or-"

"We have been alive for thousands of years," he interrupted sharply. "It is not likely that we had misunderstood _anything_."

The vampires were deadly silent afterwards, all of their eyebrows slightly quirked upwards. I felt like cheering Caius on. Even though we were clearly outnumbered by them, he still held them at bay. At least, for now.

I nervously glanced between the beautiful Volturi leader and the lead attacker. They seemed to be having some kind of staring contest going on, and I dearly hoped it wouldn't break out into a fight. The wolves both crouched into a spring, almost confirming my fears.

"Where are the others?" the first looked to each side. "I am surprised the three of you aren't together. I expected you all to be a bit more… _inseparable_. Being the three leaders of the world and all. From the photograph I had looked upon, I recognize you being the one blonde out of the trio. Except your hair is different…"

Caius gave him a square look. "Yes. I had been trying to get the attention of a certain young lady."

"Ah," the first nodded understandingly. "Now that is something I believe we understand each other on."

My mind was boggled. First they were building on a blood bath, and now they were talking about hairstyles. Another confusing prospect to add to the list in the last few hours.

The second vampire, who had been staring at me practically the whole time, finally spoke up. "Is that her?" he asked in a low and manipulative voice.

All three attackers were fixed on me now, but Caius didn't turn around to face me. His grip on my arm tightened, and he stared forward, trying to get all their attentions elsewhere. It didn't work. They all examined me, tearing out every bit of confident I had left in me with their very eyes.

"Well, Volturi Lord," the first finally said, glancing between the two of us. "You have good taste in women. I'm impressed. In all curiosity, is she more beautiful than all of you other suitors?"

Caius's grip slowly loosened. "No woman will ever come close to her beauty."

"Hm," The first mused, scanning me over again. Feeling too uncomfortable, I childishly took another step behind Caius, giving the attacker the best glare I could muster. I wished I could think of something powerful to say in return, but there was nothing to say. What good would it do if I started calling him a heartless bastard and creeper?

"It is a pity coming to this," the first went on, all attention going back to my blonde protector. "To me, Caius Volturi, you were the most powerful leader out of the three. You gave mercy to no one and that is a true gift. You're strong and you can view things in a way that one would kill for."

"I'm flattered."

"Good. Because there's more. I think we can settle on an agreement."

My eyes instantly flew to Caius, and some part of me expected him to do the same. But he remained a statue, calm and collected, as most leaders would be. The only movement he made was raising one elegant eyebrow, giving the attackers a look of curiosity and defiance.

"I'm listening."

"The three of us had been changed about a decade back," the first shifted his position. "And the man who changed me personally, happened to be an ancestor of mine that no one knew what happened to. His name was _Peter_, and according to him, he needed to change someone so he wouldn't be alone anymore."

I supposed that would be something that one of our kind would do. There were no traces of lies in the attacker's message yet, and Caius still hadn't moved.

"Peter was changed by a woman who he loved with all his heart. I do not remember what her name was, but he always murmured it after I was transformed. They both followed all your _unusual_ laws for centuries, until the woman decided that she wanted children."

Uh oh, I thought. I knew where this was going.

"And being the noble sir he was, Peter caught hold of a child without any parents, an orphan, and changed him so they could have a family. This made her extremely happy, even though the child was a bit difficult for them to control, and they had a few accidents with the child killing humans in its tantrums. But they were still as happy as ever. That was until two of you _dear_ Volturi guards showed up, and murdered the child in front of both of them."

Caius didn't say anything about immortal children being illegal, and continued to listen to the attacker's story.

"And as further punishment, they murdered the woman, too. Peter managed to slip away, but the Volturi promised him that they'd come back and kill him for being a part of the creation of the immortal child. Peter lived for two hundred years, waiting in fear for when the Volturi would return and finish the job. I had to sit next to him for _years_, listening to the fearful stories of the Volturi and their cruelty.

"When I returned from a hunting trip one night, your guards had apparently paid Peter a visit. His neck wasn't just broken, his entire _head_ was pulled off, and so were many of his limbs. And they had set him on fire. They were already gone by the time I got back, and I _knew_ it was them who did it."

The sad part was, I could now understand why the attacker was so angry at the Volturi. Having only one companion and in the world, and having to hear him talk about things that scared him beyond belief. There was no helping him. There was only darkness, waiting for the time these monsters were coming to kill you and everyone around you.

"It was at that moment," the first lifted his chin and spoke darkly. "That I realized I could not let the Volturi continue their reign and be the so called 'peace-keeping' leaders of the world."

"I could have been the one that sent the guards to go kill off Peter and his family," Caius finally muttered. "I'm curious as to why you were recently saying how great I was for my sense of cruelty, then."

The first smirked valiantly. "Because I believe you and your personality can aid us in making us the new leaders of the Volturi."

I drew in a sharp breath at what the attacker just said. Was he joking? He _had_ to be joking…

Caius gave him a tight smile. "You offend me."

"Here us out," he insisted. "Aro and Marcus Volturi had been alive for thousands of years, and they had done a good job at it, I will admit. But they do not understand how the system of things work in this current time. Not like you and I do. _You_- you have been around just as long as them, but you understand what needs to be done and what does not need to be done. You can _help_ us. You can rule with us."

Caius was deathly silent after this, and I thought for a terrible moment he might be considering the psycho vampire's offer. Finally, he gave them an expression of pure amusement, icy red eyes glinting. He spoke dangerously low. "You would have Aro and Marcus killed…the two leaders that have been with me for thousands of years, my _guards_, my position, and everyone that I know… _and_ continue to give _me_ the divine right to rule the Volturi?"

Everyone remained still.

"A valiant try, I suppose," Caius prompted. "But a bit too imprudent for my taste. Brilliant young boys such as yourselves should put a little more thought into how one is going to try and trick an old, wise Volturi Lord."

"I must be hearing you wrong," the first insisted, with raging eyes. "I thought you of all people would understand the concept of how _weak_ your fellow leaders are, and yes, I _have_ done my research. You have been mistreated, and _ignored_ by them, Aro in particular. And you would protect them? What have any of them done for you? Have they ever gave the slightest thought into what you had to say?"

"As a Volturi Lord, I am always given the right to speak; mind what ever your research had foolishly stated," Caius returned. "And it is getting a bit obvious what your true motive is. What you really need from me."

"Pray tell," the first spit out.

"The Volturi's trust."

Ka-boom.

The first looked absolutely distraught, while the two others behind him had their eyebrows raised. The wolves no longer took in an aggressive stance; they watched the quarrel in confusion. I couldn't believe it. Caius had completely shut down the attacker's offer, and it was amazing in more ways then one. But now they were angry, and it was battle time.

Damn.

The first let go of his furious expression, and sighed. "Well, just like you've said, it was a good try. No matter, though. You've seen what we can do to your precious guards. Throwing off the _three_ of you should not be that complicated. You've seen our powers."

"Oh, indeed I have," Caius completely released me. "And I haven't doubted it for a second."

"Yes," the first grinned. "A shame we could not have been on the same team."

"A terrible shame," Caius backed up a step, and I gripped onto his arm in desperation. The wolves' ears flattened and growled ferociously. "You did have a point, however. Marcus is probably the most depressing creature in the world and he doesn't have anything to offer most of the time. And Aro… well, he's Aro. The biggest psychopath in all of the universe."

Suddenly, the attacker's advances slowed, and they all went still, rigid faces and unmoving eyes. I automatically turned my head to see what they were looking at.

"But, my God," Caius said. "I wouldn't have them any other way."

A relieved smile took over my features.

We were surrounded by the Cullens and the Volturi.

* * *

**The tables have turned now ;) But the attackers haven't showed any true colors yet, more revealed in the next chapter! By the way, I apologize for not updating before Christmas, I got sick and its never fun to write when your coughing and sneezing while you're doing it. Merry Christmas guys! :D Or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa...**

**So, I'm picking up some ideas for a 3****rd**** Stuck in Volterra. Let me know if you guys want me to do it- cause I'm all for it now!**

**Another special 'Happy Gilmore' quote!**

**Mr Larson: **That's two thus far, Shooter

**Shooter McGavin: **Oh, you can count. Good for you.

**Mr. Larson: **And _you_ can count, on _me_, waiting for _you_ in the parking lot!

**Review ^^**


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

* * *

**BELLA**

Aro was the first to step forward, strutting towards us with a casually interested look at the wolves. "Forgive me for not reaching you earlier, brother. Apparently there was a distraction down by Seattle. There were fifteen newborns in total that needed to be taken care of."

I _knew_ it was too unlikely that these five creatures did the entire killings by themselves. Luckily, it seemed all of the Cullens and Volturi were able to take care of the problem without any scratches. Caius gave him a curt nod, and Aro turned to me. "By the way, Bella. Are you quite alright?"

"Oh…yeah. Yeah, I'm fine, now."

"Excellent," Aro shifted his contained gaze to the three attackers. "Therefore, you must be the ones who started this whole uprising. It is a pleasure to finally meet face to face. I am Aro, one of the three rulers of the Volturi. Over there is Lord Marcus, and I believe you've already been acquainted with Lord Caius."

Oh, Aro. Always so damn polite, no matter what the circumstance.

Not that I was complaining. I was just happy they all showed up in time.

The first attacker loosened his rigid expression, and melted it into defiant amusement. "Indeed, I did," he responded.

"And what is your name, young man?"

The attacker smiled with teeth. "Salvador."

Well, then. That explained the 'S'.

"Spanish," Aro observed. "How fascinating! I have always had a deep admiration for Spanish names. They are so unique! I once had a dear friend who came from Spanish descent, and he went by the name Raymundo. It was quite the popularity at that time."

My eyes wandered to meet Caius's, and see what expression he was wearing. Like I expected, he looked like he was about to smack his palm against his forehead in humiliation.

"That's very interesting," the first attacker said. "As well is your power. In fact, all of your powers are intriguing. I did not know they could range to this many possibilities."

"All of our powers?" Marcus questioned hoarsely, walking up to Aro's side. "You can tell who has powers between us all?"

Salvador smiled proudly, now, and it was utterly terrifying. Was he for real…or was he just trying to worry us? I didn't like this at all. He wasn't that powerful. He couldn't be. He _couldn't_.

"Sure I can," the attacker said nonchalantly.

"Prove it," Caius spat out.

And so he did. Salvador switched his gaze over to where the majority of the Volturi guards were standing, fixing his maniac-like eyes on Jane. "You, dear. Don't you have a dark gift. Setting unreal flames upon the victim and inflicting horrendous pain. The very thought of you putting that power in my direction makes me _shiver_…"

Jane's eyes darkened at the attacker. "Believe me, sir. I'm sure you will become more acquainted with how it works in little time."

"Will I?" Salvador looked amused. "If you don't mind, I'd like to try out your passionate power for myself."

Before any of us could question what he meant, Jane was kneeling on the earth, Alec's supportive hands keeping her from falling completely. Her once evil eyes were now squeezed closed, gasps of pain escaping from her perfect child lips. I automatically looked at Caius for some sort of confirmation on what the hell was going on- what was making Jane look so fragile. But he just mirrored Aro's bewildered expression.

"Sister…!" Alec gasped, shaking her limp form violently. "C'mon, sister. _Jane_!"

"Gracious Lord! What ever have you done to her?" Aro cried.

The first attacker ignored him, making movements as if he had installed a new brain in his head and was trying it out to see how it fit. His eyebrows rose in approval, and he nodded a couple of times to himself. "How interesting."

"I demand once more- what you have done to dear Jane?"

"Fear not, Volturi Lord," the second attacker spoke up, since Salvador was still in a dreamland. "She's not dead. But she will remain weak until Salvador returns her, her power."

"_Returns her power_?" Aro nearly shrieked. My mind went spinning in confusion and realization. Salvador not only had leadership skills that earned him two werewolves and a bunch of newborn vampires… but he had a power himself.

He had the power to take other vampires' powers away.

"That is, if he chooses to return her power," The second attacker added.

A terrifying thought crossed me.

What if Salvador could take_ all_ of our powers away?

At the same time?

It suddenly made sense how easy it was for them to take down one of the Volturi guards. They were no match for Salvador and his impressive skill. Without their own powers… they were useless, and they would weaken significantly. They had no purpose.

"I like this power," Salvador told his fellow attackers in a realistic tone. "It makes me feel…_stronger_."

Then, his maniac eyes fixed back on all of us.

Everyone around me collapsed in pain.

Most of the female vampires, such as Alice, Rosalie, Esme, and the Volturi guards were giving out ear piercing screams, eyes tightened in agony. All the guys looked equally pained, but were trying to breath through it, to no success. I was the only one still standing there like an idiot, not realizing what was making them all so vulnerable.

All anger I had towards Alice or Edward completely vanished. Hearing them scream like that was so heart breaking… so_ horrible_. I knelt down to whoever was closest to me, and tried my best to comfort them. Comfort them and try and get them out of this curse.

"Carlisle…?" I uttered. "Esme…_Emmett_…"

They answered me with agonizing screams.

I quickly whirled around to find the blonde vampire.

He was already on the ground.

"Caius…!" I gasped, and fell to his twitching side. His golden eyes went wide to closed shut, fists clenched into painful grips. A shaky breath of anguish escaped from his lips. I automatically locked my hand with his, and clutched it to my chest, sobbing as I spoke. "Caius…can you hear me? _Caius_…"

Nobody made any move to assure me they were no longer in pain. The pain seemed to be intensifying, and the blonde vampire before me struggled to hold onto sanity. He hand was violently shaking, and his eyes couldn't stay onto mine for more than a few fractions of a second. Horrified, I frantically looked up at the attackers.

"Stop this," I begged. "_Please_."

Salvador did not turn to face me; his gaze remained settled on all the victims with a maniac-like flare. Only now did he actually show his true colors, his true power. Taking other vampires' powers away was nothing compared to this. _This_- him using the powers of another owner altogether.

"_PLEASE_," I pleaded, desperately trying to get his attention. Why wasn't he caring that I was immune to it? Was he so sick that he'd rather pay attention into his suffering victims? The second attacker was the only one who noticed me, and his face was melted in confusion as to why I wasn't bleeding my life out like everyone else. But he kept his mouth shut.

"I'm afraid that won't be happening, dear," Salvador finally said, still trained on the Volturi and Cullens.

I ground my teeth angrily. "I will _not_ repeat myself. Stop this- _now_."

Salvador grinned slightly. "No."

I struggled to truly stand up to these monsters. I had to more assertive. It was all up to me now, and no one could help. I needed to do everything I could to save them.

"Please," I tried again, uselessly. "_Anything_. Anything- just_ please_-"

"How is she the only one immune to it?" The second attacker finally asked, the curiosity of the situation getting the best of him.

"Doesn't matter," he responded, with twinkling psychopath features. "They are all useless now, I have them completely under my control. Such _weakness_…I expected them to be more of a threat. I suppose I was wrong."

Like _hell_, I snarled in my head.

My legs took off into a spring and I began to run at the attackers at full strength, my hands out to grab and twist some necks. If tackling him and getting his eyes off my family were the only way he'd stop torturing them, then I'd do it. Unfortunately, however, both the attackers and the wolves read my move before I started. Both enormous wolves jumped out from behind their masters, snarling with their teeth out. I automatically stopped in my tracks.

"Jeremy, Raymond," the first said casually. "_Kill_."

I turned on my heel to flee and hopefully buy some time before I came at the attackers again. But that plan was out of the question when dagger teeth and a huge snout yanked my shoulder, and harshly started dragging me back.

I screamed frantically, the wolf's razor teeth sinking deeper and deeper into my shoulder blade. The comfort of knowing it would grow back wasn't enough. This _thing_ had complete control of me, and it would tear me by limb to limb…just like Laurent. I banged all my strength on the wolf's snout with my right arm.

Suddenly, a blur went by and the weight of the wolf behind me was gone.

The snapping of raging teeth and dog yelps and growls was all I heard when I met the earth once more.

More growling. And wrestling.

My eyes shot over my shoulder to see my savior. The darker wolf, Jeremy, wrestled with a smaller looking dog form, his dark, shaggy brown fur contrasting with the red. My senses jerked in realization. I knew that red- tinted wolf fur anywhere…

Yes.

Those odd, triangular ears…

The eyes full of fire and softness…

"Jake," I choked.

* * *

**Sorry guys…I wanted to write more but I can't stay up late. I have to kidnap some freshmen on my soccer team early in the morning (:D) You know how that is…**

**I will have Part 2 of the battle updated soon!**

**Review ^^**


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

* * *

**BELLA**

He didn't hear me.

Instead, he tumbled away from Jeremy's powerful weight, and then lunged after him again, frantically biting at his neck. I could only remain where I was, watching Jacob fight for his life and lose grip of the possibility of winning. He needed help.

I needed to help him.

How?

I shakily started to stand up, frantically searching for a way to get in between the wolf brawl. They were all too molted together for me to yank them off him…and their figures were moving too fast.

What to do- _what to do_-

Suddenly, another blur flew out from behind me, the flashing colors of dark grey and white the only thing I could comprehend. The dark grey wolf snarled in rage as it grabbed hold of Raymond's neck and practically threw him off of Jake's back. I recognized that wolf too! Hope alighted inside me as I whirled around to more disgusting and familiar wolf scents.

Jake was never alone.

The entire Quileute wolf pack was now bounding across the meadow at full speed, their fur blowing as far backwards as possible from their speed. Their bright eyes were entirely concentrated on their targets, and none of them went for me as they passed by.

All except for one of them, who knocked me down since I was in the way and he didn't see me beforehand.

I didn't even care. Happiness flooded through my features, and a brilliant smile took hold of my face. Oh, Lord! Thank you!

The attackers, including Salvador, had finally taken their gazes off of my family, and did their best to comprehend what the hell was going on. The third attacker slashed at one wolf's leg and brought it down, but it luckily was able to get back up and continue fighting.

My legs took off in the direction of the pile of vampires.

They all were breathing heavily and in relief from finally getting out of Salvador's torture. I automatically fell to Carlisle and Esme's sides, holding their shoulders for support. "Carlisle…Esme, you alright? Can you stand?"

It took a couple more breaths for Carlisle to finally get back to me. "Y-Yes…yes, we're fine, I'm…yes, Bella, we're fine."

I took their words for it and rushed over to the beautiful blonde vampire trying his best to stand. My hands gripped his arms, and helped him continue remain on his feet. "Take it easy… you've got time. The wolves are keeping them busy."

"Wolves…" he breathed heavily, glancing over my shoulder to see all the balls of fur fighting each other. His eyebrows creased with disapproval, but then again it could have been because he was still feeling pain.

"Take it easy…" I repeated softly.

Somewhere behind us, Aro made a really unusual shriek as he stood and began straightening his robes. "Dear me…" he uttered, his eyes looking slightly twisted. "Now I understand how _dreadful_ it feels to be consumed by a pink ghost…"

I looked at Caius with a raised eyebrow. All that torture must have triggered Aro loopy.

"Is everyone good?" Carlisle asked in a strained tone. The groan of pain from all the vampires wasn't very reassuring, but everyone appeared to be alive. Jane was still on the ground, her face unconscious and settled from her loss of power.

"H-He still has it…" Alec choked, his eyes crumpling as if he were about to cry. "Her power…she's not waking up, master-"

"Calm down, boy," Caius muttered in an irritated tone, still gripping my shoulders for support. He obviously had to be the leader now, since Aro was beginning to walk in circles. "Felix, Demeti," he faced his two top henchmen. "Try to get behind those…erm," he waved his hand at the Quileute tribe. "_Things_…and twist Salvador's neck. If he's taken down, we'll have Jane back with us and we can end this."

Both Felix and Demetri nodded at their orders, and unstably headed towards the group of werewolf fights. Caius moved uncomfortably in my grip until he was in a better position. "As for you," he looked at me with much softness. "You're fine?"

"Perfectly," I assured. "But right now, you're going to need to go along with the wolves. They're helpful allies, I promise."

"Hmph," Caius murmured as he looked up ahead. I realized he was staring at the large black wolf that seemed to be approaching us. He studied the two of us with calculating eyes, and I dearly hoped Caius wouldn't take it as some sort of a threat.

"He wants to know if you're the leader," Edward called out to us from the crowd of aching Cullens.

Caius raised a perfect eyebrow at the words, but looked back up at Sam in a calm and sophisticated manner. "I am one of them, yes."

Sam's eyes flickered, and his ears flattened slightly. Caius called Edward over to translate for him, while most of the other vampires moved in to help kill the attackers. "He is confused…" Edward said slowly, looking up at Sam for approval. "As to why all of us couldn't manage to kill three lone vampires."

My grip on Caius's arms tightened. _Please_ let him not get offended and attack them instead!

"They can steal our powers," the blonde vampire gazed at the wolf defiantly. "And use them as their own. They now have hold of one of our strongest guard's powers. In due time, be assured that they will use the power against your pack, and we will all be defenseless, including yourself."

Suddenly, on cue, yelps and screams cut through the atmosphere, and a good fraction of the pack of wolves were now on their backs, howling in agony. Sam's ears flattened entirely, and rushed backwards to help his pack until he too became under Salvador's deadly stare.

Not too far away, Jake began wobbling away from his pack, apparently not under the spell like the others. I stepped forward to help and thank him, until I noticed there was something wrong with his eyes, and he began scratching at them uncomfortably. Jake yelped in annoyance, and he blinked a series of times.

"He's blind," Caius told me hoarsely.

I whirled on him, cradling Jake's head. "_What_?"

"Its not permanent," the blonde vampire examined Jake's almost colorless eyes. "But it will remain unless Salvador takes the power off him. Looks like he broke out Alec's power to cut off senses as well as using Jane's."

"Oh, God, _no_," I begged. "Jake!"

Jacob's head swirled and he shook it violently, clawing once more at his face. He barked and growled in frustration.

"If he's blind, then he's probably deaf as well," Caius gave my werewolf friend a hard look. "He probably can't smell you, either."

Hatred boiled within me. First they torture all my friends, family, and _Caius_…and now they hurt Jake like this?

"How…?" I weakly looked up at him. "How can we stop them…?"

He returned my look sincerely. "With some luck, I'm sure Felix and Dem-"

He collapsed.

In pain. _Again_.

I screamed loudly, almost as loudly as he was. My fingers sunk themselves in my hair and I let out a shriek of desperation. Why couldn't Caius be the one immune to it so he could fight them? He would be so much more heroic than I ever was…

I gripped Caius's hand as affectionately as I could, despite the fact it was shaking, and held for dear life. "I'm not leaving you…" I nearly sobbed. "I'm _not_ leaving you…"

"So," a loud and arrogant voice called from behind me. "What do you say, Terrance? Do you want to do the honor of getting rid of her? Once she's done and out of the way we can move on with the rest of the executions."

I dropped Caius's hand, and turned to face the two attackers. They were closer than I expected, but I didn't dare move and expose them to Caius. I was going to defend him until the end.

The second attacker, Terrance, examined me with a frown before looking back at his leader. "She obviously has a much better power than any of the others. Personally, I think she's too valuable to dispose of."

My mind whirled at the thought. I always knew I was different… how Edward couldn't read my mind or Jane couldn't hurt me with her burning power. But did I really have a power of my own?

Salvador tossed him an exasperated glance before focusing back on me. "Clearly, Terrance, you are just yearning for a female companion. Besides," he stepped towards me, and I stepped backwards. "If she truly was all that valuable, she would be a warrior and try to stop us instead of standing there, muttering useless words for us to stop."

That smug grin did it all for me.

I lunged at him, but Terrance held me back, reading my move before I even did. Salvador continued to smile, and motioned Terrance to drag me out of the way so he could finally face the twitching and pained Caius. I struggled as violently as I could to get out of the second attacker's grip.

"Don't you _dare_ touch him!"

Salvador looked at me curiously before grinning back down at the blonde vampire. "Say, Lord Caius. You're not looking too well."

Caius struggled to focus on them past the pain, but it was clear he meant to glare. Salvador shook his head. "Hurts, doesn't it? Well that's exactly what you and the rest of your disgusting clan gets. _Some_ royalty you were." Caius screeched louder, and his hands flew to his eye sockets. Something inside me dropped. Oh, _no._

He was blinding Caius.

"_STOP_!" I screamed, falling to the ground to help tear Terrance's grip off my arms. "STOP! PLEASE! _PLEASE_- JUST _STOP_-"

"I doubt you'll need your sense of smell," Salvador barely regarded me. Caius's entire face was buried agonizingly in his hands. He began yelling even louder than before.

My eyes raged as I stared at the attacker. HATRED.

"Why would Aro ever choose you to be his companion?" the attacker mocked cruelly down at him. "You don't even have a power. You're worthless. You have no talent."

HATRED. HATRED. It coursed through my body.

Salvador then stepped backwards before sending a horrible kick in Caius's gut. He cringed at the unbearable pain, and I heard his side crack a bit from the kick. I screamed with him, feeling his every pain and every break.

"You're all too weak to stay in charge," Salvador spat.

HATRED. HATRED. HATRED.

Another kick, another crack.

"_Weak_."

HATRED. HATRED. HATRED. HATRED.

"Have fun rotting in hell with the rest of your disgusting clan," Salvador smirked horribly.

I bit Terrance's wrist as hard as possible, biting down until I found the other side my fangs. Terrance grunted in pain, and he pushed me against the earth, holding me down with his weight.

Salvador's foot came down roughly on Caius's arm. A thick, ugly crack line appeared all the way from his elbow. Caius was drowning in the incredible burning.

Salvador laughed at the both of us.

"Can't believe this was our competition," he muttered disapprovingly.

_SO MUCH DAMN HATRED._

_Something stirred. I could feel it. Something stirred within my being... my arms… my legs…_

"Die, Volturi scum," Salvador leaned over the writhing blonde, preparing to rip off his head.

_NO._

_HATREDHATREDHATREDHATRED!_

I felt it before I saw it. Energy shot out from my fingertips, alighting my entire being full of power. And then, I saw a pure crystal blue wave of elastic hover from my head, sparking and radiating with complete energy. It spread fifty yards, all the way over to where the Cullens were lying, all the way to where Jake was clawing at himself.

Salvador stared up at it in raw amazement, completely forgetting his victim as he stood up slowly. The shield ran about forty feet upwards, covering the entire battlefield in a perfect dome shape. Terrance slowly began to crawl off of me, holding the wrist I punctured with my teeth.

"My God…"

Salvador was completely entranced. "I've never seen such-"

He never got to finish his sentence.

The shield itself must have freed all the vampires of Salvador's wrath, because Caius was on his feet the second Salvador was distracted. From behind, Caius grabbed his neck with his arm while his hand caught a hold of the top of his head. Salvador desperately struggled, but Caius twisted the attacker's neck both ways before finally releasing him, his body falling to the ground. Defeated.

The weight of Terrance completely left me, and I turned around to see where he disappeared. Terrance had already fled.

My being filled with giddiness. I did it! I did have a power! That shield- that breaker of Salvador's powers was all me! My arms flew around Caius before he could turn around to face me, and I let out a shaky laugh of relief.

"We did it…!" I breathed.

He pulled back, and let out a shaky breath of his own. "Well, there's still that other guy, but Demetri can probably find him in a blink," he smiled and tucked a piece of loose hair behind my ear. "You saved my life, you know. You saved all of our lives."

"I didn't even know I had a power," I admitted.

"Well, you're too special to not have one," he gave me a slight smile. I returned it, but my fingers automatically flew to his cheek to where I saw another slight crack.

"Oh, Caius…" I whispered. "Are you still hurt?"

"This?" he motioned at the cracks in his body. "No, it's fine. I barely even feel it, and it will probably heal back up in a couple minutes. The real pain was Jane and Alec's. God, I hope I never do anything to piss them off…"

"You're their master," I assured.

"Glad I am," he responded.

My eyes averted from him to the wolves and the rest of the vampires standing up and checking each other for any serious injuries. Aro and Marcus both appeared next to us, and Aro put a proud hand on Caius's shoulder. "Well, brother. Good work. I can always rely on you when things get a bit, erm… _life threatening_."

Caius nodded in return. "It was a close call. But the gratitude goes entirely to Bella. Her and her abilities will never cease to be outstanding."

"Indeed they won't," Aro looked over at me, his milky red eyes glowing with a weird vibe. "Any woman who teaches me the wonders of video games will be quite incredible."

"Thank you, truly, Miss Swan," Marcus stepped in, filling in the spot Aro completely ignored. "We will be forever in your debt, as will everyone else who has taken part in this battle today. Therefore, it is only prudent," he gave Caius a warm look. "to offer you a position in the Volturi, if your heart so desires."

I smiled greatly at the dark haired Volturi leader. "Really," I mused. "As a guard, or…"

"Or something more, if you'd like," Caius suggested.

I laughed out loud, the joy of the situation getting the better of me. Moments ago… everything seemed dark and it didn't look like for the briefest second we were going to make it out alive. Now…

Now…

I was finally going to go back to Volterra after all these years.

Just like I promised.

* * *

**Been working on this chapter all day, so I hope you guys liked it ;) I think Bella deserved to find her power, since 'Breaking Dawn' really doesn't come in this story after the whole Edward incident.**

**This story will be only a few more chapters until it reaches the end (I'd say 2 or 3), and I haven't completely decided whether or not to make a third book ;) But I probably will.**

**Please review you guys I'll update faster if you do!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

* * *

**BELLA**

Charlie's face was stricken with disbelief, his eyes wide and unmoving. For a moment, I thought my news had shocked him to death, but his heartbeat confirmed my horrid thought untrue. Still, I didn't like how horrified he seemed to be, how he seemed to look at me as if I was a Bella dummy. Like I wasn't me.

Eventually, however, his expression loosened, and he unfolded his hands, just to fold them back in a different position. My eyes lingered on his face, waiting for any kind of reaction. A laugh… or a shake of the head… even a full out sprint to the next city would have made sense.

Nothing. He just looked at me.

"Are you happy?"

His calm voice caught me off- guard. My face jerked upwards to look at him, look at him in same manner of disbelief he had done mere seconds ago.

"I just told you I'm a vampire…." I spoke. "And that I'm in love with an ancient Italian vampire king that you knew nothing about until a few seconds ago. And you just ask if I'm _happy_?"

I wasn't angry- no. But I did need some answers.

Charlie took a sip of his soda. "Well… what is there else to say? Wow? I had no idea? That's a waist of time. I mind as well skip to what truly matters."

My mind was baffled. "But… but-"

"Bella, I've always known you were different," he interrupted, his brown eyes boring into mine. "You really think I've never noticed how rock cold you are when our hands brush, or how you never seem to eat when I offer you something? I'm your dad, Bells. I'm not blind."

"But… how?" I demanded, scrambling to regain control. "I mean… how long have you known? I've been a vampire for years now… why haven't you said anything? You never tried to talk to me about it or anything-"

"I didn't know_ what _you were," he admitted, his eyes locking to his soda can. "But there was definitely something different. Inhuman. I never really figured that part of it out until I noticed how cold you were. Before, I figured you were on some sort of diet with the rest of the Cullens… the _Cullens_. Are they…?"

I nodded bleakly. "Yes."

He sighed. It was to be expected. "You've known about them for a while, haven't you?" he sighed again.

There was no point in lying to him. The reason I had to tell him in the first place was to break all the lies and come out truthfully. He deserved the truth. "I have," the words were simple.

"And you didn't try to stay away from him?"

I bit my lip. This was the part where I had to do some serious explaining. "I probably should've, and it was stupid to not do so," I admitted. "But no. I didn't."

Charlie didn't look surprised. Truly, it was obvious that I hadn't been able to control myself. How I pretty much risked both of our lives over some attractive monster who I knew full well could hurt me. But I was young and oblivious, too distracted with his looks to ever come across such a thought. My confidence had shown itself at the wrong time.

Charlie stared down at his tablecloth for hours, deciding how to properly handle it. I prepared myself for a round of questions and berating on all my past actions. He would no doubt ask me more about where I had taken off all those times and what happened to his house. He'd probably want to know about the attackers as well…

"Alright then," he merely said, gulping down the last of his can.

My mind did a double take.

"_What_?"

He looked at me, frowning. "What?"

"You aren't going to ask about my life?" I spurted frantically. "O-Or how stupid I was, or where I've been all this time? Why I've been with the Cullens- or what happened to your _house_?"

"You've been like this for fifteen years," he answered. "And as much as I'm disappointed you didn't stay away from these beings when you had the chance, you seem like you know what you're doing. Honestly, nothing else matters as long as I know you're safe. You seem to get this strange theory that once you tell me what you are, I'll completely desert you and look at you different. I don't, Bella. You're my daughter no matter what you are."

My lip trembled and I couldn't stop myself from rushing forward and catching him in a huge embrace. Charlie still loved me… after everything I've put him through… I thought he would be mad or sad… or scared, even! The fact he still accepted me as a different species was almost a miracle, and it was hard to remember I was stronger than him and probably crushing him in my hug. "Dad…" I uttered, struggling to find words.

"N-Need to breathe, Bells."

"Oh… yeah, sorry."

I retracted my arms and leaned back in my chair. Charlie perused the details of my smiling face, every difference, every inhuman quality. Slowly, he lifted his hand and touched my cheek, the warmness of his fingers radiating off of my skin. "Your eyes," he observed. "They're gold."

I nodded. There was no point in wearing contacts anymore. It would have just confused him further. "How's your arm?" I spoke up, holding his hand with my own.

Charlie looked down at the bandage on his left elbow, sweet smelling blood staining part of it. "It stopped bleeding yesterday, and the doctors said to keep an eye on it if it continued bleeding past last night," he explained, sighing. "I don't know. It feels better, but I need to change the bandage."

I forced a smile, nodding. Charlie had gotten the injury on his trip to Pullman. He severely damaged it when he and the rest of his troops were training, and he was luckily sent to the hospital to recover instead of head off to war. And when he was strong enough to participate, all the killings had mysteriously disappeared, and police blocked off the area to all the Washington citizens just in case. They never found anything.

I had been so relieved when I found out Charlie never went off with the others. It was a bummer about his arm, but it was better than his life being taken away. Renee had sent him loads of concerned phone calls during the time, and luckily, Charlie didn't tell her anything about him having to face the attackers, and he assured her I was safe.

_Thank God._

And that's why I couldn't tell Renee about my species. She would probably freak out, faint, and then faint again once she woke up. Charlie had to know, however. He had to know what I was and where I was going for the rest of my life. My bags were packed for Volterra, and there was no going back.

"There are some things I don't really want to know," Charlie confessed, going back to my case. "Just keep me updated on your well being. I don't want to know what happened between you and that Cullen boy, or what those attackers really were… the_ house_…. Yeah, maybe that's just better left unsaid."

"Yeah," I agreed, smiling out of the situation. "Its probably best you don't know all the little details. The Volturi didn't want me to tell you anything, but I knew I had to."

"Who's the Volterri?"

"The _Volturi_, dad. They're the kings of the vampires, you can put it."

"Huh. And what made them change their minds?"

"They didn't," I said. "But I can change the rules every once in a while. I am going to be a future queen, after all."

Charlie stared at me in disbelief, watching my triumph smirk before he erupted into laughs. I laughed with him, and it felt good. Refreshing. I had been so nervous on what his reaction would be that I had forgotten he was my father, and he would always find a way to accept me the way I was. "Is this guy really so great that you had to leave Edward for him?" he finally asked. "He's an actual king?"

"Even if he wasn't, I'd still prefer him," I said truthfully. "Honestly, dad. He's a great guy."

"And if he's a king, can it be assumed that he'll treat you like a queen?"

"Of course."

"Hm," he murmured. "I still need to meet him. He won't attack me, right? He'll have as much control for my _tasty_ blood as you do currently?"

I laughed, nodding. "I'm sorry… it's just hilarious to me that you're so casual about all this. Of course he won't attack you. If anything, I would be able to protect you if he for any reason decided to go all crazy. Trust me, dad. I've had years of experience."

"I have trouble believing that," he muttered sarcastically, but I knew deep down he was serious. Since when have I ever been able to get all down and aggressive?

He'd be surprised.

"Where are you going to move?" I had to ask, feeling guilty all over again.

He sighed. "Don't know," he crumpled his soda can. "I lost a lot of important stuff in there, Bells. All my photos of you when you were a baby, all the memories with your mother…" he trailed off. "I'll probably end up finding a place around here somewhere."

"I can help you pay-"

"You damn well won't," Charlie pointed a finger at me.

"No, really-"

"Bella," he said, and I closed my mouth. "Don't even think about it."

_Fine_, I wanted to mutter. Aro would probably be more than willing to help my dad in his financial needs, especially since it was kind of our fault he had to start from scratch. But knowing Charlie, he was probably too full of pride to admit he needed help. _Well, too bad for him_, I thought devilishly. _We are going to help him out whether he likes it or not._

"Bella, dear?"

Both our heads turned to Esme in the doorway, a soft smile on her features. "Caius wanted me to come get you."

Automatically, I started standing up. Charlie frowned in confusion. "Is that your guy?"

I smiled. "Yeah."

"An Italian name, huh?"

"I told you he was Italian before, didn't I?"

"Oh... yeah," he muttered. "Well, he should make me some really good spaghetti for dinner. That sounds_ really_ good right now. _And,_ it will help him get on my good list."

"Dad!" I exclaimed, laughing.

"Hey, I'm serious. It's a craving."

I sighed, shaking my head. "You know what, if that's what you really want, _I'll _make some for you. Deal?"

"Nah, you don't have-"

"Too late!" I said delightfully, strutting out of the room. "I'm doing it! This might be the last time I ever get to cook something- I am_ so_ doing it! You can't stop me!" Charlie broke into a smile as I left him in the Cullen's kitchen, Esme deciding to keep him company until I got back.

It was nice of the Cullens to let him stay at their place until he found a new home. Carlisle was just as happy as I was to learn he was okay, and was more than willing to offer him a place in their home. Only now did I realize it was probably not the best idea to tell him they were all vampires who drank human blood. Hopefully, with some sort of luck, he would come to understand as much as I did that the Cullens would never hurt him.

Bree was the only one outside, keeping an eye on the huge fire created in the center of the meadow. The scattered remains of the two dead attackers were thrown into the flames, along with one of the huge werewolves who lost his life against the Quileute tribe. The other werewolf had survived and surrendered to Sam. It turned out he was just a kid, and Sam announced he and the rest of his pack would watch over him and include him as one of their own. Jacob said he was going to help Sam teach him the proper ways of handling his abilities, and help him gain control of his beast that comes out every full moon.

Bree hadn't joined us during the battle. She was told to protect my dad just in case one them when lingering over there, but she never got any action. Still, there seemed to be something wrong with her, and it hardly went unnoticed as she stared into the burning embers of flames.

"Did they catch the other attacker?" she suddenly spoke up, averting her eyes to me.

I shrugged. "I'm not sure. Demetri and Felix went after him," they never told me anything. "I'm sure they did, though. It's pretty hard to escape those two."

She nodded, going back to her solemn mood.

"What's going on with you?" I had to ask.

"Nothing. It's just…. I knew him."

"Who?"

"One of the attackers."

My eyes widened. This was unexpected. "How?"

"Well, remember how I was in that army of Victoria's… and I surrendered and all that?" she checked my face for approval. "You guys didn't end up killing all of them. I mean, yeah, you didn't kill me. But there was someone else, who left the army before the battle began. He was actually one of my good friends. Fred, was his name."

Fred. He must have been the third attacker that day, behind Salvador and Terrance. "I actually don't remember paying attention to him at all during the battle," I admitted. "He kind of lingered in the back. The blond guy, right?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah, that was him."

"Why did he join Salvador? I mean, if he was your friend, he must have been somewhat of a good guy…"

"That's what I don't get," she sighed. "He didn't seem like the guy who would be interested in world domination. He was in college, and he didn't want to fight. Maybe he was forced to join him…? I mean… he did have a repelling power, and Salvador seemed to like vampires with powers. That may be why you barely noticed him, he was working his power on all of you."

I suppose that did make sense. "Well… I'm sorry we had to kill him, Bree. Truly, I am."

"No," she said back. "I'm glad you did. Him and the others wouldn't have been good kings at all, and he obviously wasn't as good hearted as I thought. Maybe its best this way. Maybe its best I never know why he turned into such a savage."

I put my hand on her shoulder, and gave her the warmest smile I could. This was tough for her, especially since she never really had many friends outside of the Cullens. But like she said, it was probably better this way. "Well, I'm always here if you want to talk about it more. You know that, right?"

She smiled and nodded a couple times. "Yeah, I do. Thanks, Bella."

The exact reason why her and I were so close.

"Then again, you won't be here that much longer," she gave me a ripe grin. "You going to Italy with your _lover boy_."

I smiled back. "Hey, c'mon. That doesn't mean we can't talk on the phone. And I'm sure I'll come down to visit. I doubt Charlie will let me leave him forever, even if I wanted to. You are my family, too. And besides, you have the other Cullens to stick by you."

Her lips twisted in a weird expression. "I don't really want to talk to Edward or Alice after what they did to you."

"You'll find a way to forgive them, just like I will in time," I explained, even though I doubted my own words. "And then you'll be as close to them as you were before. But just call me up if they act suspicious, again. I'll bash their heads in if they do anything to hurt you."

"You scared them too much to ever try something like that again."

"Well, I _am_ quite frightening, aren't I?"

"Meh. I've seen better."

"That hurt my feelings."

"You'll get over it."

The two of us laughed once more before embracing, and I pulled her in as much as I could. She was the only real person I'd miss when I left to Volterra, besides my father and Jacob. She was no adopted sister. She was the real thing.

I had to leave her when I remembered Esme's words about Caius needing me for something. My body accelerated through the branches and trees up through the forest, only slowing to a tread when I saw the wooden cabin in the distance. Volturi guards swept in and out through the doorway, stacking their expensive supplies in neat piles. Most of them continued working while others bowed in respect or gave me warm smiles. Aro was outside as well, his walk in a light skip as he praised his guards for their work. My eyes averted from all the elegant vampires to the two figures in the center of the meadow.

I could tell from the stench and the big, muscular build that the one with his back to me was Sam, leader of the Quileute Tribe. He had been around a lot, and it must have been a good thing since I got no news of fights between them and the Volturi. The last thing we needed was another battle. And I knew Caius thought the same way since he hadn't said anything bad about the pack yet; he didn't even have the courtesy to call them _mutts_.

The second figure was obviously Caius. Even with his firm stance and calculated look, he made the world wish it were as beautiful as him. I slowly trailed up to the two, and lingered behind; not wanting to interrupt any important matter they were talking about. But both of them ended up noticing me, Sam turning all the way around to study me with his dark eyes.

"Hey, Sam," I said politely.

He nodded once. "Bella."

Him and Caius exchanged a few more words before the werewolf headed off completely, transforming into his wolf form the second he disappeared into the woods. The blond vampire gave me a warm smile.

"Um… did I interrupt something between you guys?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No, we were about done anyway. He just wanted to know the basics of our situation from now on. I have agreed to be on alliance terms with him and his pack when it comes to the safety of humans. It seemed that's what he had wanted from the start, and was why he came to help end the attacker's existence."

"You like him, don't you?" I smiled evilly.

Caius scowled. "What? I do not… I mean, he's tolerable enough, but…"

"You and him are best buds," I finished. "Just admit it."

Caius growled, but grinned reluctantly. "He's alright, I suppose. For a shape shifter."

It was good enough for me. I was just glad that Caius and the others didn't decide to wipe them out, like he once wanted to wipe the existence of children of the moon. He didn't even care if that one child of the moon boy stayed in Sam's pack, as long as he had him under control!

"When do you want to leave?" he asked, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

"Um… when are you guys going to be ready?"

"We've truthfully been ready for the last couple days," he admitted. "We're just packing up the last bits of stuff. I didn't want to make you leave the second we were all set, I wanted you to have enough time to say goodbye and everything."

"Oh…" I was flattered. "Well, I may need to say goodbye to them again, actually."

"Take all the time you need, dearest."

* * *

And so I did. That following day, Charlie and I had one final heart to heart conversation, and I did end up making him some spaghetti. Caius even came into the house and helped me out, even though he sucked at determining if the noodles were done or not. We all had a good laugh about it though, and Charlie seemed to approve of Caius a lot more than he ever did with Edward. He said Caius would officially be on his good list if I taught him to make spaghetti properly.

Bree and I of course had to say goodbye one last time. We exchanged every possible way of communication, and I promised to send her lots of pictures of Italy and myself having a good time. She even threatened if I didn't send her pictures that she'd march right into Italy and kidnap me back, something Caius couldn't even take as a joke.

Edward and I exchanged plain goodbyes, and it was as simple as that. No hugs, no kisses, not even a handshake. I could tell deep in his heart that he was sorry for putting me through what had happened, and for that, I did forgive him. I just didn't feel like saying it out loud.

And then that was the end of it. That was the end of boring, rainy old Forks for me. The beautiful Italy sun was bright and welcoming when I set foot in the country, and it almost screamed into my face how much it had missed me and how perfect this place was. Caius was at my side every bit of the way, and all of the Volturi guards swarmed me with compliments and joy. I'm sure they were more happy that their cruelest leader was finally happy, but I liked to think of it as praise for me coming back never the less.

The palace was as perfect and hauntingly surreal as it was before. Only now did it seem more lively, more open than the dark, shallow place I had first thought it was when I first came. Everywhere I looked I was reminded of memories. The book shelves with Shakespeare in them, the town square where the festival was taken place. I even thought I saw Aaron and his spiky blue Mohawk riding around the city on a motorcycle.

During the first few months, Caius and I spent all night out on his deck, watching the stars and catching up on everything we've missed. He read me his book called 'Stuck in Volterra' many nights in a row, and I never got tired of it. I claimed he should've published it, but he rebuffed that he only wrote the story for me and no one else. His loss, I always told him teasingly.

After nine months, I was baffled when I heard that he had lost his locket. Even though I didn't have mine anymore, it still hurt knowing that both of us wouldn't have something to hold on to represent each other. But, however, like the sap he is, he surprised me with a brand new locket, with sparkling white pearls and diamonds, a much more beautiful locket than before. It beat everything Edward had given me, and not because of its beauty. Caius had a matching one, and they both played tunes of the most angelic pianos. It was beautiful.

And after many pictures sent to Bree and my father, and a bit over a year of staying in Volterra, Caius ended up proposing. He had been shaking from nervousness, but I thought it was cute, and ended up kissing him in reply. Of course I said yes. Aro and Marcus were so thrilled that they actually started dancing- well, Aro started dancing and Marcus glared at him for making him do a spin- but all was well, and word got out pretty damn fast.

All the vampires in the world were sent invitation letters, and practically all of them accepted, eager to see the vampire lord's new queen.

* * *

**Gah- I'm sorry guys I took so long to update! THERE IS ONLY ONE MORE CHAPTER LEFT :D I was in the Hunger Games mode… so I kind of lost track and for that I apologize. This story will come to an end very very soon…**

**And about the 3****rd**** book, I announce that there is a very good chance I will make it. However, I'm going to take a break with the Stuck in Volterra series, so it probably won't be published for a while. Sorry But I WILL make it, it's going to be called 'Tied to the Tyrannical Laws' and it will focus on Bella struggling to be a proper Volturi queen, along with a lot more other issues ^^ **

**Also, I posted another story that is Hunger Games, called 'Startling the Fire' and its Cato/ Katniss. If you Hunger Games fans wanna give it a try ^^**

**Please Please PLEASE review guys ^^**


	27. Chapter 27

**Before you guys read on, I just wanted you to know you've all been a great help to me You've all inspired me to continue with your feedback and none of it could've been done without ;) Thank you guys!**

**LAST CHAPTER OF BOUND TO A BLACKENED SOUL!**

**Chapter 27**

* * *

**CAIUS**

It was a night of metempsychosis.

And it was a night of beauty.

The evening wind bristled my hair and robes as I stepped foot on the balcony overlooking the city. Not a cricket stirred. Not a heartbeat thumped. Just pure, intoxicating silence. It was the first time I had looked down at the city and found no flaw, no distraction to ripple my satisfaction. I placed my hands on the railing and breathed for the first time in hundreds of years.

But as all perfect and silent moments came, they were history in a flash. Aro's scent mingled the hallway, and sure enough, his low, graceful footsteps could be heard as he stopped next to me. And for a good while, we just stood there, side by side, doing nothing but peruse the view.

"An agreeable night," he finally spoke.

I nodded once in agreement. "Yes, it is."

"Never thought I'd see the day when my dearest friend would be so happily married," Aro continued. "It nearly brings tears to my eyes."

I scoffed. "Please, Aro. Marcus is far more dear to you than I ever could be."

"Nay!" Aro looked distraught. "I favor everyone equally, my brother!"

"Probably the most ridiculous thing I've heard you say."

"Truly?"

"No," I half smiled. "Not even close."

"Ha!" Aro straightened. "I suspected as such!"

The two of us enjoyed each other's company for the next few minutes until Aro started mentioning the many guests downstairs in the throne room. "They are sure to be wondering where you've went by now," he fixed his long, dark robes. "You_ and_ your beautiful bride."

I smiled to myself. Thousands of years alive, and not once had I seen something so fair, so inhumanly divine it was impossible to form words to describe her. Gorgeous, beauteous, and all other kinds of words for the fairest shriveled to her feet at their inability to match her description. It was impossible. Then again, she was never meant to be discussed between the lords and ladies easily. She was too good for that.

Sulpicia and the other Volturi members, pardon Jane, had been believed to be the ones to prepare her. They had truly outdone themselves. When my gaze first directed to the far opposite doorway, I could only remember a flash of white. A flash of hope alighted by God Himself, into the creature that stood there. No flaws to point out, no comparisons to any other females in existence. It just _was_ her. She held the fates of Heaven and Hell in her fingertips, the destruction and rebirth of mankind, that creature- my bride, Bella Swan.

Diamonds and white flowers were strung in her dark hair, the stones reflecting radiantly off any source of light. Her veil touched the ground, along with her enormous white dress that flowed on for several feet. Her hair had been done beautifully as well, but I could not remember it clearly. My eyes had been trained on her face.

She seemed to address the closest ones in the isles with her eyes. All the guests, every vampire just stared. Few ladies in the crowds weren't gaping with disbelief. A few of the men even glanced in my direction after looking at her. They probably couldn't believe she had chosen _me_, when she was worthy of so much more. I couldn't blame them.

The reception was filled with dancing. The vampires and their mates requested and danced to several of the most erotic dance forms in all the years they had been alive, and it was quite out of my league, as well as Bella's. We luckily got away with only dancing to the husband and wife dance.

She disappeared shortly afterwards with Sulpicia and Heidi to dress into something more appropriate for the reception. No doubt she'd want to get out of pulling that mile long dress.

They had been gone ever since. That left me to address all the guests and introduce some to others, which was painfully tiring. I didn't want to talk to all of _them_ when I could be with my new bride. But since she was still away, I decided to escape to the balcony and take in all the events today.

"It's a shame her father couldn't join us," I responded, ignoring Aro's suggestion. "To miss your own child's wedding must be quite a disappointment."

Aro waved it off. "Oh, dear old Charlie knew the stakes quite well. He knew it would not be safe for him."

"Did we even have to invite them all?"

"Some of them would've crashed the party, anyway," Aro mused. "We simply cannot refuse to let them meet their new queen. It is only fair. Besides!" he boasted. "I have five guards already taking pictures right and left! They'll be sent to him in bundles once the night is over."

I nodded, but the thought still stained guilt.

Aro suddenly patted the railing before turning back towards the doorway. "By the way, your surprise is ready."

"Everything's there?" I raised an eyebrow. "It's all set?"

"All there," Aro smiled.

"Good," I smiled back. "I guess all we have to do now is wait for the goddess to descend back downstairs."

* * *

**BELLA**

The person in the mirror was beautiful.

I didn't know how it was possible, or how I could ever find myself so… _flawless._ Even in my vampire years, I had always found _something_ wrong or out of place. Not until now. Not until I was left standing in front of the enormous reflection while two psycho Volturi females were fighting over what to do with my hair for the reception.

I never had much appreciation for Sulpicia, but now she was growing on me. Or at least I was to her. She had sculpted every piece of hair on my head and every jewel strung in the curls. She also had a thing for screaming at others in Italian.

"Her hair must be down!" she commanded. "_Bun no ridicola_!"

"But my lady!" Corin tried. "If she is to dance, shouldn't her hair be up-?"

"No!" Sulpicia silenced. "I said down!"

"She said down," I shrugged to Corin, who could only oblige to her queen's wishes. The Volturi guard started loosening my clips and diamonds, letting long, luxurious curls fall to my shoulders. Aro's wife merely studied me in the mirror, her eyes squinting and searching for flaws.

"You may remove the diamonds," the queen decided. "But keep the flowers above her left ear. They will do."

"Yes, my lady."

"Do I get no say in this?" I attempted with a weak smile.

Sulpicia scoffed. "If this was up to you, the entire building would've crumbled above our heads, and everyone would wonder how Caius ever wanted the likes of you." She turned my head back into the mirror. "Every vampire in that room must be impressed. There must be no imperfections. No distractions."

"Well, how did I do so far?" I asked. "I did what you said. You know, about actually looking at people in the crowd… I even smiled, too!"

"Yes, I saw," the queen dabbed at her lipstick. "Your smile was off, however. It was too crooked. You could tell it was fake."

Hm. Maybe she wasn't growing on me.

When Corin finished with my hair in the exact way Sulpicia wanted, she headed to the back room to fetch another dress. This one, luckily, was supposed to be much shorter and easy to walk in. And it was beautiful, too! Strapless, except for the huge sash on my right shoulder, beaded with white jewels that matched the heavily crested 'V' shaped necklace around my neck. Sulpicia added a new more touches to my hair and eyes before finally deciding I was fit enough to go back downstairs.

"Introduce yourself to as many vampires possible," she ordered, fixing the hem of her long, blue dress. "They need to see charm, as foolish as it may sound. Do whatever Caius instructs. And soon, you will be able to escape for the night."

I frowned. "Escape?"

She smirked back. "Caius's surprise. You will find out soon enough."

Now I was interested. Sulpicia and Corin both walked in front of me as we descended down the flight of stairs and down several hallways to the throne room. I started to mentally prepare myself for introductions. I always felt weird with these things. Now it was going to suck even more, since my introduction had to be as perfect as Sulpicia created.

My feet slowed to a halt.

What was that scent?

Everyone was supposed to be adjourned to the throne room, yet someone was out of place. And the scent was strangely familiar, yet not familiar at the same time…

My head turned into a hallway, which was constructed of large pillars. They all were finely crafted, but dark, from the lack of daylight. My eyes automatically found the dark figure leaning against one of them in the shadows, pale hands shuffling a deck of cards. I felt my eyebrows tighten in confusion.

Suddenly, the figure lifted his head. He seemed to be wearing some sort of hat, since I couldn't see the color of his hair. The cards twirling in his fingers suddenly drew to a halt, as his low, red eyes studied me with intensity.

Fear and suspicion pricked at my skin. It made no sense. Who was the man, and why was he here? Why wasn't he with the rest of them? I had seen so many red colored eyes in my lifetime it was impossible to count, but this man's were the first to truly frighten me. The man's head slowly eased higher, shadows reflecting off the shapes of his face.

"My lady?" Corin's voice cut through my daze.

I automatically looked back at her, and started to point back to the pillars until my finger hung in its position. The man was gone. And so was his strange scent. It was as if he had never been there in the first place.

"Um," I hurried after them. "Yeah, sorry. Never mind."

What the hell?

Luckily, I didn't have much time to ponder it, because everyone was clapping and praising me when I first came in to view.

I gave them the best smile I could muster, scanning the room full of beautiful faces and warm, red eyes. About twenty different people rushed forward to meet me, and I could only stand there dumbly as they bluntly started cramming words in my head.

"My name is Francisco Valenzuela, my queen!" one vampire had managed to grab my hand and kiss it. "I have been a friend of Aro's for many years, and I'm so delighted to see-"

"My queen, I was wondering if you could get your husband to alter a law-"

"My queen, will you help my family?"

"Um…" I stammered idiotically. "I-It's nice to meet you all-"

"My lady, what was your thoughts on-?"

"Gentlemen," a clear, calming voice rung above all the nonstop chatter, and the vampires all thankfully started to back off. Relief washed through me as I saw the familiar, brilliant face of Caius heading through the crowd until he was right in front of me and took my hand. "Let the angel breath, for goodness sake. She will answer your questions another time." He smiled at me.

Whew. That was close. I thought for a moment I'd have to call for Sulpicia, which would've been hell.

Caius led me away from the dispersing crowd, and apologized for the vampires' actions. "I should've been more prepared," he admitted. "I should've known they'd all want to meet you as soon as possible. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I smiled at him lovingly. "I was just… taken back. A little confused on what to do."

"You won't have to deal with them alone," he promised. "Ever."

And I believed him.

He helped me so much with the introductions. He stayed by my side the entire time and always included me in the conversations without a strain. I was actually beginning to feel like the headstrong, beautiful queen that I was supposed to become. I made no awkward stances or comments. I was beginning to feel like I was made for this.

The only problem was all the unfamiliar faces at my own wedding. I wished I knew more of them, or at least were able to invite some people I was close to. None of my human friends or family could join, which was understandable. But someone. Someone to have a completely normal conversation with.

Caius seemed to read my thoughts after I finished introducing myself to a French couple. "I thought ahead on this one," he grinned. "It would just be too cruel of me not to invite a certain friend of yours." He motioned behind me.

I turned around, frowning. "What-?"

I gasped.

Bree was in my arms before I could make another movement. She was screaming louder than I was. "YOU LOOK SOO GOOD!" She blew my eardrums out.

I was laughing with her, happiness overwhelming me. "You don't know how glad I am you're here!"

"I know!" she agreed.

We remained as freak-like fan girls for several more minutes until Carlisle and Esme both came up from behind her. They were matching light colored suits and dresses, brilliant smiles on their faces. "You look great, Bella," Esme hugged me. "Congratulations."

"Thank you," My voice was teary.

Carlisle basically repeated Esmes comment before nodding proudly at Caius. "I hope you had a good stay over these past months, Bella?"

"I did," I answered. "And will continue to do so."

"Good," he smiled. "Both you and your husband are welcome back in Forks anytime." We both nodded, and he started searching the crowds. "Don't know where Emmett and Jasper went… they're around here somewhere. If you don't see them tonight, then know they wished you both the best."

"I'll keep an eye out for them," I promised.

Eventually, Carlisle and Esme pulled Bree along with them to meet more people. I left Caius talking business with four other male vampires, and announced I was going to try to introduce myself to others without his help. He kissed me once and told me he'd be there if I needed help.

It was a bold move on my part. But I guessed I just didn't want to look back on my wedding and think about how helpless and afraid I was to shake hands with people I never met.

Until I came across Alice.

She was wearing a light purple dress with small ruffles, her ears carrying pearls as well as the tops of her shoes. Although she certainly looked the part, her face was solemn and regretful. Her golden eyes flashed to mine before I could turn away.

Well, crap. Now it was too late. The only way to get out of this respectfully was to talk to her. Looking away quickly and heading off another direction would've made me look like a jerk, and I wanted to keep that attitude as far away possible, especially now. The pixie slowly headed in my direction.

"Bella," she said lightly, with a sad tone.

"Alice," I addressed.

She looked up at me weakly. "You look perfect," she said. "It's making all the females jealous."

I didn't crack a smile. "Thanks."

"Um," she suddenly unfolded a parchment from her dress pocket. "Carlisle and Esme already bought a huge wedding gift for you signed by all of us, but… I thought I'd get you something separate. Since you deserve it."

She handed me the paper, and I nearly dropped the expensive charm bracelet folded inside. I caught it just in time though, and I studied the heart shapes and stars crafted from all different kinds of jewels.

"I know you probably don't need it," she continued. "But I felt the need to give you something really special. An apology gift."

I looked back at her, and she quickly lowered her eyes to her shoes. But I was never going to scold her. "No," I said quickly, examining the bracelet once more. "This is, um… this is really great, Alice. Thank you."

Her eyes lightened with hope. "It won't ever take place of what I did," she confessed. "But I hoped you would like it. See that one, there?" she pointed to the biggest jewel. "It was originally a sapphire, but I had them change it to a topaz. Since you once said that was your favorite color and all."

"Oh yeah," I remembered. The color of Edward's eyes. The color of my dead, soulless eyes. That color was officially out of my favorites, but I greatly appreciated the gift never the less. I examined it a couple more times before looking back at the pixie. "Out of pure curiosity… why did you really do it, Alice?"

She shrugged hopelessly. "I don't know. We were fighting Victoria's newborns at the time, and I kept having visions of you and him. It was really confusing me. They were quick flashes. I saw you were happy, but Caius wasn't making any sense to me. I thought he was bewitching you, as did Edward. I really wasn't looking to break you guys up- I mean… yes, I was, but I didn't know your relationship was that serious," her eyes closed. "If I would've known you loved him that much…"

It was a crime seeing Alice this hurt. You could tell from the bottom of the soul her explanation was sound, and real. She hated what she did.

"Did Edward come here with you guys?" I finally asked.

She shook her head. Like I expected.

"Well for what it's worth," I sighed, giving her a weak smile. "Thanks for everything. Not in a sarcastic way, either. I think I understand where you're coming from, finally. After all this time."

Alice's eyes ringed with hope. "Friends?" she stuck out her hand.

I stared at it for a long while, until the point she almost put it back down. But I took it, and I gave her a true, genuine smile.

"Sisters," I shook.

* * *

"Where are we going?" I demanded in an amused tone, holding onto my flying dress. "Why are we running!"

"Shh!" he grinned back at me, pulling me along. "We have to put as much distance between us and them as possible. Once they realize we've gone, they'll come straight after us and ruin the moment. Especially Aro."

"What moment?" I asked. "What surprise?"

"Stop asking, sweetness," he laughed back at me. "We're almost there."

So, I did what he told me until we neared the lake. The moon danced along the ripples, and glowed with beauty. And on the shore, perched there next to a couple of candles, was a perfect, wooden long boat with two oars leaning on the sides.

I covered my mouth. "You bought a long boat!"

"Surely you remember last time and how much fun they were," he reminded me, leading me to it. "Don't worry, I've been practicing for months now. I know how to use them a lot better."

"You mean we won't fall out and get soaked, this time?" I smiled.

"That's exactly what I mean," he returned it. "Care for a spin on it?"

"Uh, yeah!"

I was grinning ear to ear as I stepped inside, and slowly ran a hand over the material. The craftsmanship was incredibly smooth for wood. "This is incredible," I said out loud. Caius climbed onto the opposite end, and gave one stroke out into the lake, only to get us off the shore. Then, he placed the oars back in their position, and sat right in front of me, taking out something from his pocket.

My locket.

He carefully strung it around my neck, smiling. "Now you're complete," he said.

"Where's yours?" I asked.

He loosened his tie to show me it lying perfectly around his own neck. "I never removed it," he explained. "And I never will. But, as for _this_ one…" He reached into his pocket again, and showed me his old locket, the one shaped like a heart with pearls and the lullaby. "I know I said I lost it…" he admitted. "But I always kept it. And I want you to have it, now."

The old necklace rested in my palm once he opened my hand. I tearfully ran my fingers over the shape, remembering every single detail. "That heart always belonged to you," he added. "And until the stars come crashing down on Earth, it will remain yours forever, Bella Swan."

The old locket fell hard against the boat floor as I lurched forward and wrapped my arms around him, my face buried in his shoulder. If I was still human, and had tear ducts, there would be soak city going on over here. Caius embraced me just as tightly, running a hand down my long, wavy hair. We stayed that way forever, it seemed, until shouts and protests could be heard coming from the town.

"Crap!" I muttered with a huge smile.

"I second that," he grabbed the oars and frantically started rowing farther out into the lake. We both laughed together as all our guests stopped at the shores, watching us get away helplessly.

"Shame on you, Caius!" Aro yelled after us. "You said we were all going to get to see you taking off!"

"Oh, did I say that?" Caius called, and I couldn't stop laughing. "My apologies, my friend, perhaps you misread the memo!"

"Have a good time out there, you two!" Aro scoffed. "Because all hell is going to break loose when you come back!"

Caius laughed with me, and he continued rowing out farther and farther into the lake. "He can't hurt us too bad," he assured. "He might challenge me to a Pac-man if he's really all that upset."

"Ooh," I cooed. "You should be scared, Caius. I heard he's really good now."

"He can't even get passed the strawberry round," he rolled his eyes.

"Well, you can't get past the cherry."

"What?" he grinned devilishly. "That's a lie. I got to the pretzel."

"Oh, I'm impressed now," I held up my hands, and we both continued laughing our hearts out as we did all those years ago, the moon flowing off the water and into the lockets that sparkled above our hearts.

* * *

**THE END!**

**Of Book 2 Leave your responses and thoughts because I wanna hear em' all! Please! Please…**

**Alright, now here's some updates on future stories and my plans for the rest of the summer. Sadly, after I finish 'New Life' and 'Startling the Fire', Fanfiction cannot be my main priority. I have promised my grandfather that I'm going to work on a book I'm going to publish, and it will need my full attention for most of the summer I'm sorry…**

**But once that is finished, here are some other books I'm planning to get to afterwards.**

'**Tied to the Tyrannical Laws' will be the 3****rd**** installment of the Stuck in Volterra series. It will focus primarily on Bella's life as a queen in Volterra, and that will be the main setting, for the most part. Struggles will go between herself and the people, Caius, and a dark force rising from the recent past. Here's the summary of the story that is going to be in the FF label:**

** The three leaders of Volterra and the vampire world proclaimed me queen and wife of Lord Caius. The good news: I am finally reunited with him and the Volturi members. The bad news: We underestimated a certain newborn, and he's got a pack of wolves directed at me and my son. **

**It's a rough draft. But I'm sure the 'son' part caught your interest ;) You'll see soon enough.**

'**Love's A Loaded Gun' will be a Jacob/ Jane story that happens after the events of New Moon. I haven't developed a summary for you guys to read yet, but I know the plotline and everything else. The only way Edward and Bella can get out of Volterra alive is to let Aro have control of a few shape shifters from Forks. This will be in Jake's POV.**

'**It's Only Forever' is Marcus/ Bella, and it is a romance. The only thing I really got for it is a few basic plotlines and title. And while it is a romance, it won't cover the entire book. It will mainly focus on Marcus's inability to let go of his past wife, Didyme, for fear that loving Bella would make him betray Didyme.**

**That's all the stories I got that are coming. I know a lot of you wanted Aro/ Bella, and I will eventually get to that pairing too, I promise. Anyways, thank you all for your support and your kind reviews and alerts I really couldn't have done any of it without you guys, and have a great summer too! I'll miss you guys :'( **


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